Barnett, UT School of Public Health San Antonio’s founding chair, awarded $250,000 UT System Faculty STARs prize

Tracey E. Barnett, PhD, the founding chair of the Department of Quantitative and Qualitative Health Sciences at the new UT School of Public Health San Antonio at UT Health San Antonio, recently received a $250,000 UT System Faculty STARs (Science and Technology Acquisition and Retention) award. This award will allow the new school of public health to obtain and utilize advanced technologies for combining, analyzing, and incorporating machine learning to enhance science.

Barnett’s research focuses on health risk behaviors for adolescent and adult populations, particularly in regard to tobacco use, smoking cessation for adults, and prevention strategies for emerging trends among youth populations. She is currently involved in a project aimed at improving educational guidelines for substance use disorders among individuals with developmental disabilities.

In anticipation of the launch of the new UT School of Public Health San Antonio this fall, Barnett expressed excitement about the opportunity to contribute to training the much-needed public health workforce. She believes that the rapid growth of UT Health San Antonio and the surrounding region makes this endeavor timely and essential.

Prior to her current position, Barnett held roles at the University of Florida and the University of North Texas Health Science Center’s School of Public Health. In these positions, she served as an assistant professor, associate professor, and chair for various departments related to public health research and education.