Susan Zieff

Susan Zieff is a Professor in the Department of Kinesiology at San Francisco State University (SFSU), College of Health & Social Sciences. Her research focuses on social justice and equity in physical activity access, addressing health disparities among marginalized populations such as Latina girls and LGBT youth. She holds a B.S. from Boston University, and M.S. and Ph.D. from UC Berkeley, specializing in Human Biodynamics.

Her current projects include developing culturally appropriate interventions for Latina adolescent girls' physical activity through partnerships with the YMCA of San Francisco and UCSF. She collaborates with Jae Sevelius, Ph.D., to explore LGBT youth perceptions of body image and physical activity. Ongoing work includes evaluating Open Streets initiatives' impacts on communities, leveraging technologies like the Discovery Tool for participatory advocacy. A 2017 Brocher Foundation fellowship supports her bioethics research on physical activity technologies' ethical implications.

• Research Grants: Livable Cities, Stanford Prevention Research Center, SFSU Office of Research
• Teaching: Courses on cultural/gender studies in physical activity, history/philosophy of kinesiology, and socio-cultural analysis
• Future Work: Bioethics frameworks for health-benefiting technologies among vulnerable populations

Her work bridges public health, policy, and community engagement, with a focus on empowering marginalized groups through participatory methods and evidence-based advocacy.