April Ballard
Assistant Professor Population Health Sciences- Education
PhD, Environmental Health Sciences, Emory University, 2023
MPH, Environmental Health and Epidemiology, University of Kentucky, 2017
BA, Biology and Spanish Language and Literature, Transylvania University
- Biography
Dr. April M. Ballard is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Health in the Department of Population Health Sciences at the School of Public Health at Georgia State University. Her work is on health disparities and equity related to water, sanitation, and hygiene. She employs mixed methods approaches to understand how social (e.g., stigma, poverty) and environmental (e.g., resource distribution, water quality) conditions influence behaviors and health outcomes, specifically focusing on children, women/girls, and those experiencing houselessness.
Dr. Ballard applies advanced statistical modeling, qualitative methods, measurement development, and theory-driven approaches. She emphasizes translating research for public health policy and practice in her work. She is particularly interested in developing and implementing human-centered, pragmatic programs to address inequities. She has worked in public health research for nearly a decade. She has led rural- and urban-based projects in the United States (Appalachian Kentucky, Central Kentucky, metro Atlanta) and Ecuador.
Dr. Ballard earned her Ph.D. in Environmental Health Sciences from Emory University and her MPH in Environmental Health and Epidemiology from the University of Kentucky. During her Ph.D., she was a fellow at the Center for Global Safe Water and the Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health. In 2021, she was recognized as an Agents of Change in Environmental Justice Fellow. (https://agentsofchangeinej.org/)
- Publications
See my Google Scholar page for additional work.
- Ballard AM, Laramee N, Haardoerfer R, Freeman MC, Levy K, Caruso BA (2023). Measurement in the study of human exposure to animal feces: A systematic review and audit. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheh.2023.114146
- Ballard AM, Young AM, Cooper HLF, Caruso BA (2022). ‘You feel how you look’: Exploring the impacts of unmet water, sanitation, and hygiene needs among rural people experiencing homelessness and their intersection with drug use. PLoS Water. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pwat.0000019
- Ballard AM, Caruso BA (2021). Public handwashing for basic hygiene in people experiencing homelessness. The Lancet Planetary Health.
- Ballard AM, Hoover AT, Rodriguez AV, Caruso BA (2021). Emphasizing choice and autonomy in personal hygiene, menstrual health, and sexual health product distribution to people experiencing homelessness in Atlanta, Georgia during COVID-19. Health Promotion Policy. doi.org/10.1177/15248399211024996