Caroline Sparks, PhD, MA

Caroline H. Sparks is an Associate Professor in the Department of Prevention and Community Health at The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.

• Phone: (202) 467-2277
• Fax: (202) 467-0481
• Email: ihochs@gwumc.edu

A licensed psychologist with expertise in behavioral health and adolescent psychology, Professor Sparks teaches graduate-level courses in program design and evaluation and advanced behavior. She also serves as Deputy Director of the Prevention Research Center, the scholarly home for many of the research activities in the Department of Prevention and Community Health.

In both her teaching and research, Dr. Sparks promotes the value of community-level interventions to address public health challenges. She has developed programs to promote tobacco-free environments and HIV/AIDS education, and to prevent violence against women, and has consulted with national and local organizations addressing these and other health issues, including health informatics. Dr. Sparks often applies a participatory research approach to her work with community coalitions, and has evaluated numerous programs, including the Primary Care Coalition of Montgomery County and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded SmokeLess States Initiative for tobacco control.

Education

Master of Arts (History), Tulane University
Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), Ohio State University

Teaching

PubH 385-Planning and Administration of Health Promotion/Disease Prevention Programs, Department of Prevention and Community Health
PubH 383-Evaluation of Health Promotion/Disease Prevention Programs, Department of Prevention and Community Health
PubH 387-Community Organization, Development, and Advocacy, Department of Prevention and Community Health
PubH 365-Health Promotion in Health Care Settings, Department of Prevention and Community Health

Research

Dr. Sparks has been the Principal Investigator for numerous grants and contracts, including a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded evaluation of a youth curriculum to promote a tobacco-free environment; an evaluation of school programs to prevent violence; and a program to train medical students in complementary and alternative medicine. Currently, she is the evaluator for two geriatric training projects, two electronic health information projects and a project to develop multi-site electronic health records.

Community Service

Professor Sparks recently served on an Institute of Medicine committee to develop a blueprint for a tobacco-free society and is a reviewer for two journals focused on health promotion. She has been a member of the Advisory Committee for the American Psychological Association's Adolescent Health Project and for an APA program to prevent early childhood violence.

Departments

• Prevention and Community Health

Institutes & Centers

• Prevention Research Center

Research Activities

• Evaluating a School-Based Curriculum
• Geriatric Education
• Health Information Partners (HIPS)
• KidsAct! Anti-Tobacco Advocacy Program Evaluation
• School-Based Violence Prevention

Community Activities

• Evaluating a School-Based Curriculum
• Geriatric Education
• Health Information Partners (HIPS)
• KidsAct! Anti-Tobacco Advocacy Program Evaluation
• School-Based Violence Prevention

Publications

• Outcome evaluation of Talbot County, Maryland Safe Schools Program.
  Sparks CH, Hernandes M, Huhn A, Jones K. Outcome evaluation of Talbot County, Maryland Safe Schools Program. Final report. Submitted to the Talbot County Public Schools, Easton, Maryland. Grant No.: S184L004, Department of Education (US); 2004.
• Outcome evaluation of Talbot County, Maryland Safe Schools Program.
  Sparks CH, Hernandes M, Litvinov L. Outcome evaluation of Talbot County, Maryland Safe Schools Program. Report. Submitted to the Talbot County Public Schools, Easton, Maryland. Grant No.: S184L004, Department of Education (US); 2002 Aug.
• Annual evaluation report of the W.A.Y. Too Cool to Smoke Program.
  Sparks CH, Lee L, Leep C, Kosako B. Annual evaluation report of the W.A.Y. Too Cool to Smoke Program. Submitted to the D.C. Department of Health. Funded by the American Legacy Foundation; 2002.
• Local and national uses of a Road to Recovery evaluation.
  Sparks C, Feeney S, Martin S, Canos M, Huang Y, Hoffman D. Local and national uses of a Road to Recovery evaluation. Cancer Practice Suppl 2001;9(1):S56-S63.
• Report of the Montgomery County Teen Tobacco Prevention Initiative Survey.
  Sparks CH, Williams K, Klouj A, Leep C. Report of the Montgomery County Teen Tobacco Prevention Initiative Survey. Submitted to the Montgomery County Department of Health; 2001.
• Evaluation of a school-based mental health assistance project for District of Columbia schools: phase I progress report.
  Sparks CH. Evaluation of a school-based mental health assistance project for District of Columbia schools: phase I progress report. Submitted to the Washington Psychoanalytic Foundation. Funded by the Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Department of Health and Human Services (US); 2001.
• Kids act to control tobacco: a tobacco advocacy curriculum guide for middle school teachers.
  Hodak M, Sterne M, Sparks C, Hudson N. Kids act to control tobacco: a tobacco advocacy curriculum guide for middle school teachers. Washington (DC): National Education Association Health Information Network; 2000.
• Literature review on advocacy, empowerment, youth development & tobacco control: a briefing book for the National Best Practices for Youth Conference
  Akers N, Pierce B, Sparks C. Literature review on advocacy, empowerment, youth development & tobacco control: a briefing book for the National Best Practices for Youth Conference; 1999 Jun 2-4; Sarasota, Florida.
• HIV and community mental health care.
  Knox M, Sparks CH, editors. HIV and community mental health care. Baltimore (MD): Johns Hopkins Press; 1998.