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Megan Williams, PhD, CHES

Megan Williams
Megan Williams, PhD, CHES

Instructional Assistant Professor

Curriculum Vitae

CV (PDF)

Contact

Health Behavior
212 Adriance Lab Rd.
1266 TAMU
College Station, TX 77843-1266
williamsm@tamu.edu
Phone: 979.436.9772

Biography

Megan Williams, PhD, CHES® is currently an Instructional Assistant Professor at Texas A&M University and is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES®). She is an innovative educator with a variety of college-level teaching experiences in public health and sexuality-related courses. In the classroom, she utilizes a variety of teaching methods including game-based learning, student-led projects and hands-on activities to maximize student learning and engagement. Professionally, Megan is interested in improving sexual health outcomes of young adults by increasing sexual health care utilization, implementing comprehensive sexuality education, and exploring the components of sexual health interventions. In conjunction with student researchers, she investigates access to contraception in the Bryan/College Station area. Her previous research projects have explored barriers and facilitators to sexual health services in the Southern U.S..Previously, she worked at the North Carolina School Health Training Center, where she oversaw mental and sexual health curriculum professional development, and within the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiatives at the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, where she explored avenues to improve various sexuality curricula.

She is a Section Councilor within the Sexual and Reproductive Health section of the American Public Health Association and the founder of Young Professionals of Sexual and Reproductive Health. Previously, Megan earned her B.S. in Public Health and MPH in Health Behavior from East Carolina University (ECU) and her Ph.D. in Health Education and Promotion from The University of Alabama. 

Education and Training

  • The University of Alabama, PhD, Health Education & Promotion, 2023
  • East Carolina University, MPH, Health Behavior, 2020
  • East Carolina University, BS, Public Health, 2017

Professional Certifications

  • Our Whole Lives Facilitator - Unitarian Universalist Association. 2024
  • Mental Health First Aid - National Council for Mental Wellbeing. 2023
  • Certified Health Education Specialist - National Commission for Health Education Credentialing. 2019
  • Teen Speak Trainer of Trainers. 2018

Research Interests

  • Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health
  • Sexual Health Care Utilization
  • College Health
  • Sexual Education
  • Pedagogy

Teaching Interests

  • Human Sexuality
  • Personal Health
  • Intro to Public Health
  • Public Health Advocacy
  • Study Abroad

Awards, Recognition and Service

  • Advisory Board Member - Waco Area Health Education Center (AHEC). 2024 - Present
  • Section Councilor - American Public Health Association, Sexual and Reproductive Health Section. 2023 - Present
  • PHLEx Award, Office of Academic Affairs, Texas A&M University
  • Teaching Excellence Grant Recipient, Texas A&M Health Science Center
  • Best Student Poster Award, American Public Health Association Sexual and Reproductive Health Section
  • Inaugural Debra Tavasso Most Outstanding Graduate Assistant Teaching Award, East Carolina University
  • Outstanding Service by a Graduate Student Award, University of Alabama
  • Student Outstanding Work Award Session Candidate: APHA Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Poster Session
  • First Place, Society of Public Health Educators Student Edu-Thon

Representative Publications

  1. Vail-Smith, K. Chaney, E & Williams, M. (2022). Difference in important components of sexual satisfaction as identified and experienced by undergraduate males and females. American Journal of Sexuality Education. DOI: 10.1080/15546128.2022.2124211
  2. Marcantonio, T. L., Jozkowski, K. N., & Williams, M. (Under Review). How do college students perceive their sexual partner responds to them when they refuse sexual activity?
  3. Williams, M., Wilkerson, A., Chaney, E. & Marcantonio, T. Interventions to reduce STIs in the college population: A systematic review.
  4. Williams, M., Nickelson, J., Naher, S. & Abutalib, N. The effectiveness of The University of Alabama’s smoke-free campus policy.
  5. Williams, M., Marcantonio, T. & Jozkowski, K.N. What are Canadian and US young adults learning about refusals? A qualitative analysis.