Nursing PhD student part of inaugural cohort of Health and Social Justice Scholars

School of Nursing Ph.D. student Jade Montanez was chosen as part of the inaugural cohort of the University of Louisville Health and Social Justice Scholar Program for the 2016-17 academic year.

Montanez and students from the three other Health Sciences Center schools will conduct interprofessional, community-based research with a faculty mentor, participate in community service projects and attend monthly discussions. The scholars will receive $10,000 toward their education program this year.

Other scholars include Ashton Green (School of Dentistry), Mallika Saharwal (School of Medicine) and Diana Kuo (School of Public Health and Information Sciences).

Montanez received her B.S.N. from the School of Nursing and has worked as a veteran’s affairs nurse and a palliative care nurse.

During her undergraduate studies, she researched the relationship of sociodemographic characteristics with depression, anxiety and stress in African-American adults with type 2 diabetes. She has a passion for research and development of interventions to assist underserved populations with management of chronic illnesses.

Montanez said receiving the scholarship alleviates financial burden and positions her to become a research scholar.

“The program will provide practice using an interprofessional model to perform community-based participatory research addressing disparities in health risk and health outcomes among underserved populations,” Montanez said. “As a nurse, I have seen first-hand where there are shortcomings. This program will allow me to continue working diligently at improving healthcare access, education, and outcomes for all through community engagement and research.”