Catherine O'Connor, PhD

As a translational and interdisciplinary clinical trials and health equity researcher, my past and future track record focuses on developing, implementing, disseminating, and translating innovative, efficacious, culturally grounded ecological, behavioral and mental health interventions through community-based research participatory research (CBPR) with the Native Americans (NA). 

I have approached this long-term goal through culturally and community-engaged research builds upon ecological and culturally grounded protective factors and to mitigate fundamental risk factors for health, mortality, and chronic health conditions, especially related to substance misuse, structural violence, and associated mental and physical health sequalae. I currently serve as PI for the RO1 (1 R01 AA028201-01) entitled, Chukka Auchaffi’ Natana: The Weaving Healthy Families Program to Promote Wellness and Resilience and Prevent Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Violence. I also serve as the PI for the associated COVID-19 supplement (3R01AA028201-01S1): “Digital Healthcare Interventions to Address the Secondary Health Effects Related to Social, Behavioral, and Economic Impact of COVID-19.” This is a clinical trial to evaluate a culturally relevant intervention to prevent high risk substance use and violence while promoting wellness and health. 

Having been part of multiple NIH mentorship awards and having mentored students and junior faculty since beginning as an assistant professor, I am an established and funded mentor to early career investigators. I have received two NIH interdisciplinary awards, the Building Interdisciplinary Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) career development award grant (K12) and the Louisiana Clinical and Translational Science (LA CaTS) Pilot Grant. I currently mentor numerous fellows awarded NIH career development awards, including BIRCWH Scholars. My research portfolio documents the crucial combination of high productivity, persistence, and success in attaining and managing external and internal grants and research teams, publishing extensively in high quality peer-reviewed journals, and deep engagement and effectiveness in CBPR with NAs. 

Culturally grounded, community-engaged, and structural team-based approaches. I lead a team of full-time tribal and nontribal personnel and lead cross-disciplinary, cross-cultural teams to facilitate culturally grounded collaborative team-based science approaches from design to dissemination. Diligence and accountability to the communities served have enabled long-term successes in leadership as PI of a lab mentoring over 10 pre-doctoral (a majority who identify as NA) and early career researchers since 2013, when I began my career at Tulane University School of Social Work. 

I have spent the last 10+ years adapting and developing interventions through long-term CBPR with the focal communities. During this time, I have been highly active in research, publishing over 95 peer-reviewed articles in high-impact journals along with two books (one solo authored and lead editor on the other), developing the theoretical Framework of Historical Oppression, Resilience, & Transcendence (FHORT), and the Researcher Toolkit, a D&I framework for community engaged research used to structure past and present research. With a team of over 50 community health representatives (CHRs) and CAB members, we co-author peer reviewed publications, we co-present at regional, national, and international conferences, and have provided pathways for equity and leaderships development among underrepresented scientists. The majority of publications have been co-authored with students, underserved, and/or early career trainees (asterisked under contributions to science). Key contributions enabling successes and proficiency in past research adaptation span from approach, process, structure, and content and are approached through community engaged and culturally grounded methods.