Biography

Dr. Jennifer Marshall is an Associate Professor in Interdisciplinary Sciences, the Chiles Center, and Maternal & Child Health Concentration at the College of Public Health. She also serves asDirector of Planning and Evaluation for the unshine Education and Research Center  Dr. Marshall holds a BA in psychology and child development from the University of Washington, MPH and PhD in public health from the University of South Florida, and completed post-doctoral research in special education and early intervention at the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Miami. Dr. Marshall’s research interests stem from over 25 years of professional experience in programs supporting teachers and parents of young children with developmental and behavioral challenges, special health care needs, and birth defects in settings such as Seattle Children’s Hospital, Head Start/Early Head Start programs in Colorado and Florida, and the YMCA.

Dr. Marshall conducts mixed-methods, community-based research in three primary areas: early identification of developmental issues; access to services and supports; and quality in health, education, and community services. Past projects include an examination of developmental screening and referral practices among health care, social services and early education agencies; parental recognition and response to developmental delays in young children (in the US and Malaysia); and enrollment and satisfaction with services following developmental screening. Her current research agenda includes multidisciplinary child health and development research (US and international), and also research focused on special populations including children with developmental disabilities, chronic and rare diseases, and birth defects within the social and environmental of family, community, and services systems. Current projects include epidemiological and mixed-methods research with the USF Birth Defects Surveillance Program (BDSP) examining perinatal and childhood supports and services for parents of children with birth defects and developmental disabilities and several studies examining women's access to reproductive health care. Dr. Marshall is also the lead evaluator for the statewide Florida Maternal Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Initiative, Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems (ECCS) Impact Project, Healthy Start Coordinated Intake & Referral, infant mortality and safe infant sleep practices, and Florida's Early Childhood Courts.

Dr. Marshall currently serves as Co-Chair of Hillsborough Community Parenting Resources Coalition, APHA's Child Care and Children with Special Health Care Needs committees, and USF’s Sustainable Food Research Collaborative. She also serves on the statewide PRAMS Advisory Committee and is a research fellow at the Florida Institute for Child Welfare. Courses taught include Community Partnerships and Advocacy, Evaluation and Research Methods in Community Health, Community Application of Public Health Science, Child Health & Development, and Foundations of Maternal and Child Health.