Ijeoma Opara, PhD, LMSW, MPH

Ijeoma Opara, PhD, MSW, MPH, is an Assistant Professor of Public Health (Social and Behavioral Sciences) and the Director of The Substance Abuse and Sexual Health (SASH) Lab. Dr. Opara defines herself as a community-based participatory researcher with experience in working with youth and community organizations dedicated to reducing substance use in urban communities. Dr. Opara’s research focuses on strengths-based approaches for urban youth substance use and HIV prevention. Her second line of research involves highlighting racial and gender specific strategies in prevention research for Black girls. Her current projects include: (1) The Paterson Prevention Project, which is a 5-year study funded by the NIH Director’s Early Independence Award. The Paterson Prevention Project is a community-based study that focuses on neighborhoods impact on substance use and mental health for urban racial-ethnic minority youth in Paterson, New Jersey. The goal of the project is to use formative data to develop a sustainable substance use and mental health prevention program in Paterson. (2) The Dreamer Girls Project is a strengths-based HIV/STI and drug use prevention program that seeks to improve health outcomes for Black girls. The Dreamer Girls Project is currently recruiting for its formative study which will inform the development of a HIV/STI and substance use prevention program for Black girls. Dr. Opara is also involved in other studies that focus on using multiple sources of data and methodologies to inform and develop strengths-based substance use prevention interventions that involve community support, promote racial-ethnic identity and pride, strengthen social support and youth empowerment for Black and Hispanic youth and their families.