معرفی
Dr. Shaniece Criss is an Associate Professor of Health Sciences and Director of the Master of Arts in Advocacy and Social Policy at Furman University. She holds dual roles as a researcher and academic leader, focusing on health equity and community-engaged qualitative research. As a founding member of the Big Data for Health Equity Research Collaborative, she collaborates nationally to address societal impacts on health outcomes. Dr. Criss also serves as a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach and fellow in multiple university institutes including the Riley Institute’s Diversity Leaders Initiative and the Shi Institute for Sustainable Communities.
- Educations:
- ScD, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
- MPH, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health
- MPA, Harvard Kennedy School
- BA, Oglethorpe University
Her research interests center on the intersection of racism, health communication, and public policy. She investigates how systemic inequities manifest in healthcare access, maternal care, and digital discourse, with a focus on marginalized racial and ethnic groups. Dr. Criss has pioneered studies analyzing social media sentiment’s impact on health outcomes, including groundbreaking work on racialized hate speech detection and AI-driven health advice disparities.
Her recent publications emphasize tracking racial sentiments via Twitter data over decades and their correlation with birth outcomes, while also exploring caregiver perceptions of child discipline policies and LGBTQ+ health stigma. These studies reflect her dual focus on quantitative data analysis and qualitative community narratives.
- Awards:
- "Top 50 Women Leaders of South Carolina"
- ETV’s "Women Vision SC" Award
- Inductee into Greenville County Schools Hall of Fame
As a community leader, Dr. Criss serves on the Travelers Rest City Council and Prisma Health’s Board of Directors. Her extensive advisory roles include the South Carolina Hospital Association, Racial Equity and Economic Mobility Commission, and Greenville Women Giving. She has bridged clinical and academic work through roles at CDC, CNN, and the Peace Corps, where she produced a national health TV show in Guyana.
Her work integrates policy advocacy with grassroots engagement, exemplified by her leadership in LiveWell Greenville’s healthy eating initiatives and her media literacy research with Black emerging adults. Current projects include developing anti-racist frameworks for public health communication and expanding telehealth literacy programs for underserved populations.
