Sophie Wenzel, MPH, DrPH

Thematic Area: Public Health/Community Health

Overview of Practice and Research:

Inspired by my late colleague Susan Marmagas, my motto is “start where the community is” in all public health work. Most or all of my research is community-engaged research. My research is with and for the community that I am working with.

Two of the big projects that I am currently working on include promoting adult vaccination in rural underserved areas (a practice-based project) and conducting an evaluation of a novel community engagement method to address the opioid epidemic (a community engaged, practice-based research project). Past research and practice topics have included tobacco prevention, cancer, sexual health, healthy eating/active living, suicide prevention, and substance use. I regularly serve as a methods expert (qualitative methods and community engagement methods) on research studies with partners across campus. Finally, I am conducting several external evaluations of practice-based projects with and for community partners.

For ten years, I have served as Director of the New River Academic Health Department, a collaboration between Population Health Sciences at Virginia Tech, and the New River Health District. Through this joint position, I coordinate student placements, coordinate workforce development initiatives, and collaborate on practice-based research projects.

Highlight Research relating to the specific thematic area:

• All of my research is public health related.

Current Grants:

• Office of Opioid Abatement Planning and Prioritization Grant. Southside Planning District Commission (PI)
• IHBEM: The fear of "here": Integrating place-based travel behavior and detection into novel infectious disease models, National Science Foundation (Co-PI)
  
• Community and Extension Agent vaccine education project, eXtension Foundation (Co-PI)
  
• Scaling Up Participatory Action Planning to Address the Opioid Epidemic in Rural Virginia Communities, Corporation for National & Community Service (Co-PI)
  
• Empowering rural communities for action through evidence-based community engagement: Applying the SEED Method to the opioid epidemic, USDA NIFA (Co-PI)
  
• Evaluation of the Drug Free Communities grant in Franklin County, Piedmont Community Services (PI)
  
• The integrated Translational Health Research Institute of Virginia (iTHRIV), University of Virginia, National Institutes of Health (Co-PI)
  

Recent publications:

• McKeague, L., Wenzel, S. Lemaire. R. From Social to Collective Capital: Mechanisms and Processes behind the Success of a COVID-19 Taskforce. (Accepted to the Journal of Health and Human Services Administration February 2024)
• Silverman RA, Short D, Wenzel S, Friesen MA, Cook NE. 2024. COVID-19 related messaging, beliefs, information sources, and mitigation behaviors in Virginia: a cross-sectional survey in the summer of 2020. PeerJ 12:e16714
  
• Wenzel, Sophie G.; Nguyen, Amanda J.; Miller, Kristin; Guarinello, Leigh;McKell, Allison; and Hosig, Kathryn (2023) "Promoting Community Health Research Partnerships Through a Small Grants Program: Processes and Lessons Learned," Virginia Journal of Public Health: Vol. 8: Iss. 1, Article 7.
• Kwitny, M., Richards, Q., Cann, N., Lewis, J., Vaught, K., Bejoy, A., Gutierrez Matos, F., DiGirolamo, G., Loving, C., Neveldine, T., Weekes, S. and Wenzel, S., 2023. People of a Pandemic. Community Change, 4(2), p.4.
  
• Wenzel, S., Coe, J., Long, T., Koerner, S., Harvey, M., Shepard, M. (2023) Qualitative Analysis of Small-Animal Veterinarian-Perceived Barriers to Nutrition Communication. Journal of the American Veterinary Association 1(aop) 1-9
  
• Cook, Natalie; Wenzel, Sophie G.; Silverman, Rachel; Short, Danielle; Jiles, Kristina; Markwalter, Teace; and Friesen, Mary Ann (2022) A mixed methods investigation of how young adults in Virginia received, evaluated, and responded to COVID-19 public health messaging, Virginia Journal of Public Health: Vol. 7: Iss. 1, Article 6
  

Recent honors or recognitions:

• 2023   “Immunization Neighborhood” Champion Award. Team award for Virginia Cooperative Extension Collaborative on Immunization Teaching and Engagement. National Adult & Influenza Immunization Summit Awards Presentation. Atlanta, GA.
• 2021   Delta Omega (Delta Mu chapter at Virginia Tech) Faculty inductee
  

Overview of mentor activities (undergraduate, graduate, and/or professional students):

• I advise approximately 15 students at a time, both first and second year MPH students. I have served on several PhD committees as a qualitative methods expert.

Overview of CeZAP and/or ID-IGEP involvement:

• I have been peripherally involved with CeZAP, mostly in the context of promoting community engaged research.