KENNESAW, Ga. | Sep 27, 2021

Monica Swahn, dean of Kennesaw State University’s Wellstar College of Health and Human Services, will be the featured researcher in the next installment of the fall series of Research with Relevance – Deans’ Showcase. The Office of Research is hosting the hybrid event on Friday, Oct. 1 at 4 p.m. in Prillaman Hall Room 1000 on the Kennesaw Campus. Guests who prefer to attend virtually can participate in the live video stream on KSUTV.

Swahn, who joined Wellstar College as dean in March 2021, is a psychiatric epidemiologist and public health scholar. Her research pertains to youth health-risk behaviors and how alcohol exacerbates risk for violence, injuries and HIV. She strives to use her research to help those in need, particularly youths, as they struggle with various issues that affect their communities.

Over the past 15 years, Swahn has worked with vulnerable groups globally, focusing on regions in West and East Africa. She immersed herself in research studying health disparities among youth in Kampala, Uganda when she was a Fulbright Scholar at Makerere University in Kampala.

While there, Swahn observed a significant boom of urban migration and population growth among youth. Youths 15 years old and younger make up 50 percent of the population of the land-locked country, with limited government resources to assist them all. She has since collaborated with local and national governmental entities and community-based organizations to help establish and expand resources and support groups whenever possible.

For more information on the talk and for information on future dean guests, visit: https://research.kennesaw.edu/roc/researchwithrelevance/index.php.

— Jacob Segura

Photos by Jason Getz

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A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 45,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 7 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.