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Jelani Kerr, PhD, MSPH
Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences
Interim Chair; Associate Professor
485 E. Gray St., Room 215
Louisville, KY 40202
Office: 502-852-3292
Fax: 502-852-3291
j.kerr@louisville.edu
Background
Jelani Kerr is an Associate Professor in the Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences. He is also a Commonwealth Scholar within the Commonwealth Institute of Kentucky. His research focuses on HIV vulnerabilities of young people in the African Diaspora in the US and Canada. Specifically, he investigates behavioral and social determinants that influence HIV/AIDS inequities. His work extends beyond measuring disparities to reducing them through multidisciplinary collaborations to develop and evaluate community-focused interventions. He received his MSPH and PhD in Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior from the Arnold School of Public Health at the University of South Carolina. He also holds a BS in Biology from Fort Valley State University.
Research Interests
- Racial/ethnic HIV inequities
- HIV-related stigma
- Criminal justice policy and HIV inequities
- Mental Health
- Intervention development and evaluation
Current Projects
- Examining HIV-related Stigma and HIV Testing among Formerly Incarcerated African American Youth
- Increasing Pre-exposure Prophylaxis among High-risk African Americans in Louisville, KY
- Examining HIV Risk Factors for Self-Identified Heterosexual Black Men in Ontario
Courses Taught
- PHPB 630 Social Determinants of Health
- PHPB 701 Theoretical Basis for Health Promotion
- PHPB 703 Health Promotion Research Methods & Design
- PHPB 650 Race, Racism, & Public Health
- PHUN 550 Adolescent Diversion Project
Honors and Awards
- Delphi Center for Teaching and Learning Faculty Favorite
- Peterborough K.M. Hunter Fellowship
- University of South Carolina Martin Luther King Jr. Social Justice Award
- Alpha Kappa Mu National Honor Society
- Beta Kappa Chi National Honor Society
Selected Publications
Kerr, J.C., Stephens T., Gibson, J.J., Duffus, W. (2012). Risk factors associated with inpatient hospital utilization in HIV-positive individuals and relationship to HIV care engagement. Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, 60(2), 173-182.
Kerr, J.C., Valois, R.F., DiClemente, R.J., Fletcher, F.E., Carey, M., Farber, N.B., et al. (2014). HIV-Related stigma among African-American youth in the northeast and southeast US. AIDS and Behavior, 18(6), 1063-1067.
Kerr, J.C., Valois, R.F., Siddiqi, A., Vanable, P., Carey, M.P, Romer, D., et al (2015). Neighborhood condition and geographic locale in assessing HIV/STI risk among African American adolescents. AIDS and Behavior,19(6), 1005-1013.
Kerr, J.C., Valois, R.F., DiClemente, R.J., Romer, D., Stanton, B.F., Carey, M., et al (2015). The effects of a mass media HIV-risk reduction strategy on HIV-related stigma and knowledge among African-American adolescents. AIDS Patient Care and STDs, 29(3), 150-156.
Maticka-Tyndale, E., Kerr, J., Mihan, R., ACBY Study Team. (2016). a profile of the sexual experiences of African, Caribbean and Black Canadian youth in the context of Canadian youth sexuality. Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 25(1), 41-52.
Mihan, R., Kerr, J., Maticka-Tyndale, E., Mungwete, R., ACBY Study Team. (2016). HIV/AIDS-related stigma among African, Caribbean, and Black youth in Windsor, Ontario. AIDS Care, 28(6), 758-763.
Kerr, J.C., Jackson, T. (2016). Stigma, Sexual risks, and the War on Drugs: Examining Drug Policy and HIV/AIDS Inequities among African Americans using the Drug War HIV/AIDS Inequities Model. The International Journal of Drug Policy, 37, 31-41.
Fletcher, F.E., Annang, L., Kerr, J., Buchberg, M., Sowell, R. (2016). “She told them, oh that bitch got AIDS”: Understanding the impact of multilevel HIV/AIDS-related stigma from the perspectives of African American women living with HIV. AIDS Patient Care and STDs, 30(7), 349-356.
Kerr, J., Schafer, P., Perry, A., Orkin, J., Vance, M., O’Campo, P. (2018). The impact of discrimination on intimate relationships of African American fathers: Findings from the Community Child Health Network Study. Race and Social Problems, 10(2), 134-144.
Castle, B., Wendel, M., Kerr, J., Brooms, D., Rollins, A. (2018). Public health’s approach to systemic racism: A systematic literature review. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 6(1), 27-36.
Kerr, J., Atlas, M., Crabtree, W., Chin, Y., Moyer, S. (2019). Examining social-ecological factors in developing the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health And Wellness Syringe Exchange Program. American Journal of Public Health, 109(3), 454-457.
Harris, L.M., Crawford, T., Kerr, J., Thomas, T., Schmidt, V. (2020). African American older adults living with HIV: Exploring stress, stigma, and engagement in HIV care. Journal of Healthcare for the Poor and Underserved, 31(1), 265-286.
Selected Conference Presentations
Ayangeakaa, S., Kerr, J., Combs, R., Harris, L., Sears, J., Parker, K. (2020). Become one with the community: A grounded theory study of AIDS service organizations’ HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis strategies for African Americans.American Public Health Association Conference, San Francisco, CA.
Ayangeakaa, S., Kerr, J., Combs, R., Harris, L., Sears, J., Northington,T., Parker, K., Sterrett-Hong, E., Krigger, K. (2019). A novel approach to HIV prevention: Examining views of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among young African Americans in Louisville, KY. Kentucky Public Health Association Conference, Lexington, KY.
Kerr, J., Harris, L., Crawford, T., Thomas, T., Schmidt, V., Glass, E. (2019). Using HIV-focused monologues to address HIV-related stigma among African Americans in Louisville, Kentucky. National HIV Prevention Conference, Atlanta, GA.
Okonufua, O., Allen, A., Kerr, J., Omorodion, F. (2018). Constructions of masculinity: A qualitative study of heterosexual ACB men in Windsor-Essex. Ontario HIV Treatment Network, Toronto, ON.
Husbands, W., Kerr, J., Tharao, W., Luyombya, H., Greenspan, N., Calzavara, L…Muchenje-Marisa, M. (2018). Black PRAISE: engaging Black congregations to strengthen critical awareness of HIV affecting Black communities in Ontario. Oral presentation at the Ontario HIV Treatment Network. Toronto, ON.
Kerr, J., Saad, F., Graham, A., Moyer, S. (2016). Preliminary successes with the Louisville, KY Metropolitan Department of Health and Wellness Syringe Exchange Program; Coordinating health policy, community engagement, and health services for disease prevention. American Public Health Association Conference, Denver, CO.
