Callie Rockey-Bartlett is a Master of Public Health student at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, specializing in injury and violence prevention.
We reached out to Rockey-Bartlett to learn more about her work, her life, and her academic journey through the following Q & A.
How did you get into injury and violence prevention work?
Prior to pursuing my Master of Public Health degree, I worked as a CDC Public Health Associate in the Center for Injury and Violence Prevention at the Maryland Department of Health. While collecting data for a needs assessment conducted in the Center, I learned the complex ways in which the structural barriers to resources in communities reinforce exposure to community violence and trauma, exacerbating disease burdens. Exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) was identified as a key risk factor for violence victimization, as well as a host of other negative health outcomes. Children born in poor environmental and social conditions often face barriers in accessing key determinants of health that protect against violence, such as stable income, transportation, and housing.
Given the impact that early childhood well-being and access to resources has on life outcomes, I was surprised to see the gaps that exist in investment of systems that create and maintain health. I also become increasingly interested in understanding how poor mental health outcomes and maladaptive coping mechanisms over the life course are often driven by ACEs. Often times, typical public health approaches place focus on changing behavior among individuals and families, rather than on ensuring there are adequate and equitable community structures and systems in place to support communities. I have always hoped to bring a perspective to the injury and violence prevention field that targets interventions at the systemic forces contributing to ACEs and subsequent poor health outcomes.
What projects are you currently working on, and what makes them exciting to you?
I am currently a Research Assistant for a project called Strengthening Systems for North Carolina Children, or SYNC, at IPRC. Through SYNC, community coalitions in North Carolina are receive training on the utilization of various systems thinking tools, including casual loop diagrams, to intervene upon the systems contributing to adverse childhood experiences. Rather than addressing only the symptoms of ACEs, SYNC allows communities to target the systemic causes of poor outcomes. I am currently working on multiple approaches to disseminate the efforts of SYNC out to communities, including synthesizing the SYNC training curriculum into a manual that would guide communities in implementing similar systems approaches to prevent ACEs.
The methods of SYNC are innovative in that they bring together non-traditional public health sectors to collaborate in addressing ACEs. Public health work is often siloed from the sectors that are crucial to collaborate with in order to have the most holistic and equitable impact. However, often times, it’s the case that we’re working towards similar goals as those who are in education, housing, or those in medicine. SYNC brings together people working in law enforcement, education, non-profit, faith-based organizations, to work towards a common goal. I believe that the systems approaches used by SYNC could be foundational for other disciplines in public health to utilize.
What were you doing before you started your program at UNC?
After graduating from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Arts in Public Health in 2021, I was placed at the Maryland Department of Health through the CDC’s Public Health Associate Program. My work was split up between the Environmental Health Bureau and in the Center for Injury and Violence Prevention. I assisted with spearheading an Environmental Justice Workgroup for the Bureau, which was a huge growth and learning experience for me. Many people across the Bureau initially didn’t understand how their work was correlated to environmental justice; identifying how to connect the visions of the Workgroup to address the goals that members had was essential to build rapport and trust in our efforts. Learning about how built environment approaches intersected to address both environmental health and injury/violence outcomes was also extremely interesting.
In the Center for Injury and Violence Prevention, I was a grant monitor and assisted in various programmatic efforts. This including collaborating with partners to develop and update the state action plan that described how Rape and Prevention Education funding was used in Maryland. I was also a co-facilitator of a Data Workgroup in the Rape and Sexual Assault Prevention Program. I led efforts to disaggregate much of Maryland’s indicator data that was being collected to measure changes in sexual violence outcomes. Through this, I identified where disparities in exposure to risk factors and violence existed, which subsequently informed the development of grant funding opportunities. Operationalizing data from indicators, the program identified which populations to prioritize in their third state needs assessment. As I assisted in planning and implementing the state needs assessments, I became more interested in learning how to conduct qualitative and community-centered research approaches. Interpreting the cause for disparities relying solely on surveillance data can be nuanced and dynamic, making needs assessment data crucial to assess the factors influencing risk in outcomes among populations.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work and school?
Sticking to my Pacific Northwest roots, I love to do anything outdoors – whether that be hiking, biking, skiing, running, or traveling. Moving from Washington State to the East Coast has allowed me the incredible opportunity to meet so many wonderful new people and explore so many new cities that I had never been to before. I always have an itch to have another new destination or trip planned on my itinerary to cross off.
What makes you unique?
My spontaneity and tenacity have consistently encouraged me to approach new and intimidating settings with a sense of adaptability and creativity, allowing me to succeed both personally and professionally. After I graduated in 2021, I jumped at the opportunity to move from the West Coast to the East Coast, despite the fear of moving to a place where I knew no one. This transition taught me the significance that genuine connections can have on well-being and success, inspiring me to continuously pursue new ways to build community. I am always looking to foster new, creative opportunities for connection to be created in a way that raises community voices. During my experience in the CDC’s Public Health Associate Program, I collaborated with my peers to cofound a Global Health Workgroup. Amplifying my peers’ experiences and voices related to emerging global concerns was incredibly fulfilling and taught me to lead with ambition. I am currently in the process of collaborating to get the Child Maltreatment Prevention Research and Practice Network up and running again on UNC’s campus for the remainder of the school year. My hope is to bring individuals across diverse disciplines and sectors, creating a platform that facilitates collaboration and knowledge-sharing. These experiences have reinforced my commitment to embrace discomfort and thrive amidst unpredictability.
UNC IPRC’s Injury and Violence Prevention Fellowship program provides an opportunity for UNC-Chapel Hill graduate and professional students from diverse academic, professional, and demographic backgrounds to gain hands-on experience in injury and violence prevention by working with faculty mentors, networking, and pursuing professional development opportunities.