Terrinieka Powell, PhD

Powell is a Bloomberg Associate Professor of American Health and serves as vice chair of Inclusion, Diversity, Anti-Racism, and Equity in the Bloomberg School’s Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health. She also directs the Bloomberg School’s C. Sylvia and Eddie C. Brown Community Health Scholarship Program. The program trains future public health leaders who are committed to eliminating health disparities in Baltimore and other cities. Powell is also a core faculty member of the Bloomberg School’s Center for Adolescent Health and the Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health.

Powell is a trained community psychologist with expertise in adolescent health, qualitative methods, intervention development, and implementation science. A major focus of her research and professional interest has been improving the health and well-being of Black youth through partnerships with youth, churches, schools, libraries, families, health departments, and community-based organizations. She has collaborated with institutions across the country to promote educational attainment as well as prevent sexual risk-taking and substance use among adolescents. 

Powell has over 50 publications and has been principal investigator or co-principal investigator on several externally funded grants that seek to improve the lives of vulnerable young people. Most recently, Powell worked with young adults and public library staff to develop the Better Together program, a library-based intervention designed to prevent substance use among Black youth affected by household trauma, including parental substance use, mental health challenges, and incarceration history.

She also co-leads Voices on Vax, a campaign funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which provides a social media platform for Baltimore City’s youth to learn more about COVID-19 vaccines. The campaign aims to increase COVID-19 vaccine confidence and uptake among Black families in Baltimore by creating a space for youth and their families to ask questions, share stories, and learn from one another.