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Heather Clark, DrPH, MSPH

Heather Clark
Heather Clark, DrPH, MSPH

Director of Public Health Practice

Assistant Professor of the Practice

Curriculum Vitae

CV (PDF)

Contact

Health Behavior
212 Adriance Lab Rd.
1266 TAMU
College Station, TX 77843-1266
hrclark@tamu.edu
Phone: 979.436.9363
Google Scholar Profile
Scholars@TAMU Profile

Biography

Dr. Clark is an experienced public health practitioner specializing in community capacity building and program evaluation, particularly in rural and underserved communities. Her expertise centers on utilizing a collaborative, utilization-focused approach to ensure data is practical and impactful for quality improvement and decision-making. Dr. Clark’s research interests include evaluating community-based partnerships, interorganizational network analysis, assessing and addressing rural community health, and building rural community capacity.

Over the years, she has led or contributed to evaluations at local, state, and national levels, including significant statewide projects such as the Collaborative Approaches to Well-being in Rural Communities, the Texas Tele-forensic Remote Access Center, and the Field Trauma Triage Guidelines Demonstration Project. Her collaborations extend across a variety of groups including the Texas A&M School of Nursing, the Hogg Foundation, Office of the Attorney General of Texas, Texas Department of State Health Services, National Rural Health Association, and Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.

With two decades of hands-on experience in community health, Dr. Clark has led and participated in many community health assessments, including a long-term assessment study in the Brazos Valley, Texas. Her work emphasizes understanding health status and social determinants in rural areas to drive actionable change.

Dr. Clark is actively engaged in the success of the Texas A&M School of Public Health student. She integrates research into practice by mentoring students and young professionals. She also serves as the Director of Public Health Practice, where she works with other faculty and staff to develop meaningful opportunities for students to participate in public health outside of the classroom through volunteer opportunities, service-learning, field trips, and guest lectures from public health professionals, in addition to providing oversight for the required applied practice experiences (also known as internships or practicum). The Office of Public Health Practice and Dr. Clark have recently received funding from the Texas Department of State Health Services for a Public Health Workforce Development Initiative.

Her teaching interests lie in the teachings of her mentors, Drs. Ken McLeroy, James Burdine, and Monica Wendel, and include the History of Public Health and Ethics, Social and Behavioral Determinants of Health (theory), Program Evaluation, and grant writing

Education and Training

  • Texas A&M University, School Public Health, DrPH, Health Promotion & Community Health Sciences, 2014
  • Texas A&M University, School of Public Health, MSPH, Social and Behavioral Health, 2005
  • Texas A&M University, BS, Health, 1995

Research Interests

  • Program Evaluation
  • Healthy Communities
  • Community Collaboration/Partnerships
  • Public Health Workforce Development
  • Network Analysis

Teaching Interests

  • History of Public Health and Medicine
  • Social and Behavioral Determinants of Health
  • Program Evaluation
  • Grant Writing

Awards, Recognition and Service

  • Practicum & Career Conference Planning Committee Member - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2023-Present
  • Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health - Academic Health Department Work Group. 2023-Present
  • Center for Excellence in Forensic Nursing Indian Health Services Grant Oversight Committee Member - Texas A&M School of Nursing. 2023-Present
  • International Initiative for Mental Health Leaders Member. 2021-Present
  • Global Leadership Exchange (formerly International Institute for Mental Health Leadership) Member - Rural Well-being Cohort. 2020-current
  • TAMUS Women’s Health & Sex Differences Task Force Member - Texas A&M University System (TAMUS). 2020-Present
  • TAMU Global Health Coalition Member - Texas A&M University. 2020-Present
  • Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health Member - Practice Section. 2019-Present
  • National Public Health Week Planning Committee Member - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2019 – Present
  • Executive Committee Member - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2019 – Present
  • International Program Committee Member - Texas A&M University Faculty Senate. 2019-Present
  • Faculty Council Member - Texas A&M School of Public Health. 2018 – Present
  • American Evaluation Association Member - Social Network Analysis Topical Interest Group. 2017 – Present)
  • Christian Faculty Network Member - Texas A&M University. 2015-Present
  • Women’s Faculty Network Member - Texas A&M University. 2015-Present
  • CEPH Accreditation Writing Team Member - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2024
  • SPH Scholarship Review Committee Member - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2024
  • Family & Community Health, Reviewer. 2024
  • Springer Publishing Company, Book Proposal, Reviewer. September 2024
  • Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, Competency Achievement through Applied Practice Experiences and Micro-credentialing at ASPPH 2024 Annual Meeting Session Moderator - Arlington, VA. March, 2024
  • Center for Community Health & Aging, Director of Search Committee - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2023-2024
  • CCHA Director/Faculty Search Committee - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2023 – 2024
  • 25th Anniversary Planning Committee Member - Texas A&M University School of Public Health,. 2022 – 2024
  • APT Faculty Search Committee Member - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2021
  • COVID Conversations Planning Committee Chair - Texas A&M School of Public Health. 2020-2021
  • Community Health Curricula Overlap Task Force Member - Texas A&M School of Public Health & Texas A&M Dept. of Health & Kinesiology. 2020
  • Journal of Public Health Student Capstones, Reviewer. 2020
  • Family & Community Health, Manuscript Reviewer. February 2020; May 2020
  • American Journal of Public Health, Manuscript Reviewer. February 2020
  • Career Conference Planning Committee Member - Texas A&M School of Public Health. 2019 – 2022
  • All Texas Access External Stakeholder Work Group Member - Texas Health & Human Services Commission. 2019-2022
  • Graduate Admissions Reviewer - Texas A&M University School of Public Health. 2019 – 2021
  • Public Health 101 Curriculum Development Committee Member - Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (Texas). 2019-2021
  • Interprofessional Education and Research Leadership Team Member - Texas A&M Health Science Center. 2019-2021
  • Brazos Valley Health Coalition Steering Committee Member - Bryan, Texas. 2018-2022
  • CHI St. Joseph Healthy Communities Safe Sitter Program Instructor - Bryan, Texas. 2018-2020
  • Bryan ISD School Health Advisory Committee Member - Bryan, Texas. 2000-2010; 2017-2023
  • Robertson County Health Coalition Advisor - Robertson County, Texas. 2017-2022
  • American Evaluation Association Member - Youth Focused Evaluation Topical Interest Group. 2017 – 2021)
  • Brazos Valley Access to Primary Care Taskforce Member - Brazos Valley, Texas. 2017-2020
  • Brazos Valley Health Coalition Member - Bryan, Texas. 2016-2024
  • College Station Police Officer Wives Association Member - College Station, Texas. 2011-2023

Memberships

  • Texas Evaluation Network, Member (2019-Present)
  • Society for Public Health Education, Member (2016-Present)
  • International Network for Social Network Analysis, Member (2011-Present)
  • American Evaluation Association, Member (2006-Present)
  • American Public Health Association, Member (2005-2006;2017-Present)

Representative Publications

  1. Honeycutt, S., Leeman, J., McCarthy, W. J., Bastani, R., Carter-Edwards, L., Clark, H., Garney, W., Gustat, J., Hites, L., Nothwehr, F., & Kegler, M. (2015). Evaluating policy, systems, and environmental change interventions: Lessons learned from the CDC’s Prevention Research Centers. Preventing Chronic Disease, 12(E174). DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd12.150281
  2. Garney, W. R.^, Drake, K., Wendel, M. L., McLeroy, K., Clark, H. R., & Ryder, B.+ (2013). Rural community of solution: Increasing access to care for Brazos Valley, Texas. American Journal of Family Medicine, 26(3). doi: 10.3122/jabfm.2013.03.120242
  3. H. R. (2018). Examining rural community capacity through interorganizational connections (Funded by the Episcopal Health Foundation).  College Station, TX: Texas A&M University College of Education and Human Development.
  4. Alaniz, A., Catanach, C., Clark, H., Drake, K., Garney, W., Nimmons, K,…& Moser, A. (2013). RHP 17 health status assessment 2013: Regional report. College Station, TX: Center for Community Health Development.
  5. Branford, A., Falia, G. ^, Fahrenwald, N., Clark, H., Bolin, J. N., Rigsby, M.^, & Kolade, F.^ (2023). An Examination of the Workforce in Rural America. In Ferdinand, A. O., Bolin, J. N., Callaghan, T., Rochford, H. I., Lockman, A., Johnson, N. Y. (Eds.), Rural Healthy People 2030 (pp. 217-230). College Station, TX: Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health, Southwest Rural Health Research Center.
  6. Pennel, C., Clark, H., & Rahn, R. (2015). Rural health education and community-based programs. In J. N. Bolin, G. Bellamy, A. O. Kash, & J. W. Helduser (Eds.), Rural Healthy People 2020 (pp.15-28). College Station, TX: Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health, Southwest Rural Health Research Center.
  7. Burdine, J. N., Clark, H. R., Shea, L. J. ^, Appiah, B. ^, & Hollas, C. N. ^ (2012). Health assessment in rural communities: A critical organizing and capacity building tool. In R. Crosby, R.C. Vanderpool, M.L. Wendel, and B. Casey (Eds.), Rural Health & Populations (pp. 171-190). San Fransico, CA: Josey-Bass.
  8. Wendel, M. L., Alaniz, A., Kelly, B. N. ^, Clark, H. R., Drake, K. N., Outley, C., … Burdine, J. N. (2012). Capacity Building in Rural Communities. In R. Crosby, R.C. Vanderpool, M.L. Wendel, and B. Casey (Eds.), Rural Health & Populations (pp. 215-233). San Fransico, CA: Josey-Bass.
  9. Clark, H. R., St. John, J. A., Stephenson, M. T., Johns, M., & Berkowitz, J. (2011). Implementing A second-hand smoke intervention in two Texas colonias: The case of Sabemos: Por respeto, no se fuma aqui. In M. Brann (Ed.), Contemporary case studies in health communication: Theoretical & applied approaches (pp. 166-184). Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt Publishing.