VIPR NEWS

MAY 2026: As we kick off the summer season, VIPR continues to build momentum through training, collaboration, and community impact. We are excited to welcome our newest cohort of Summer Research and Practice Experience students, who will spend the coming months engaging in hands-on learning and mentorship across injury and violence prevention initiatives. In addition, VIPR is proud to release our Community Outreach Mini Grants, supporting innovative local efforts to address pressing violence and injury prevention needs across Texas and beyond. From education and workforce development to community partnerships and research dissemination, we look forward to another impactful season with our collaborators and communities.

📢 VIPR Summer Research Experience: Congratulations to our new undergraduate research students, Aislinn Burns and Bella Pacheco from Rice University under the mentorship of Dr. Testa.

📢 VIPR Summer Practicum Experience: Congratulations to Catalina Mulhollan, MPH who will complete her practicum under the mentorship of Dr. Rix and participate as a student intern for the Safe States Alliance STAT State Technical Assessment Team.

📢 Injury and Violence Prevention Certificate: In partnership with UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, the new Injury and Violence Prevention Certificate is now underway. Open to degree and non-degree-seeking students, the program builds skills in injury and violence prevention—please share with students or practitioners who may be interested. Fall application deadline: July 1. More information is available HERE.

📢 VIPR Community Mini-Grants: Now available! Check out the website for full details.

📢 NEW from the Institute on Violence, Abuse and Trauma (IVAT): We are reaching out to share an exciting initiative from IVAT and to invite your involvement in helping shape and expand its impact. IVAT’s Bridging Research-to-Practice (R2P) Project aims to address a long-standing challenge in the field: the significant delay and disconnect between research discovery and implementation in real-world practice. The R2P project seeks to address this gap by translating new research findings on interpersonal violence and abuse into accessible, actionable guidance available through online formats, including newsletters, webinars, and social media. Through this initiative, we hope to foster meaningful collaborations between researchers, practitioners, advocates, policymakers and others with lived experience, to promote the ultimate goal of supporting individuals affected by violence and abuse through the dissemination of evidence-based research. 

For this initiative to be successful, we need your support! If you are interested in contributing to this project, please consider filling out the R2P interest form so that we can learn more about you and your area of expertise. There are several ways to get involved, such as signing up for the R2P Listserv, joining our stakeholder advisory network, contributing to future webinars and panels, sharing project materials, and spreading the word about R2P.

📢 VIPR Kudos:

• Dr. Shannon Guillot- Wright’s, Hotel of 10,000 Stars, was a finalist at the 11th Annual Water, Texas Film Festival. You can find the trailer here.

• Dr. Shannon Guillot- Wright was named the 2026 recipient of the R. Palmer Beasley Award for Innovation by the UTHealth Houston School of Public Health.

• Dr. Jeff Temple was recognized as an Inaugural SAVIR Fellow for Excellence in Injury and Violence Prevention at the 2026 SAVIR Conference in Providence, RI.

*We want to celebrate your wins, please send them to Liz Torres, info@texasvipr.com.

📢 Featured Publications:

• Violence experiences and risk for homicide among intimate partner violence shelter residents

• Housing insecurity among college students: Associations with interpersonal violence victimization

• Short- and long-term associations between recent stressful life events and adjustment among adolescents: The role of coping orientations

• The “Secret of Seven Stones”: Short-term efficacy of an online intergenerational sexual health education game for early adolescents and their parents

• Prevalence, correlates, and patterns of leaving firearms unattended in vehicles among US firearm owners

UPCOMING EVENTS

WEBINAR SERIES

Texas VIPR Webinar Series: This monthly series will explore current research, education, and advocacy as it relates to violence and injury prevention across the lifespan and in larger social and institutional structures.

Join us on the third Tuesday of each month from 12 - 1 PM

Interested in presenting? Email info@texasvipr.com

June is National Safety Month!

This month’s webinar will feature Dr. Michael Lemke and the work being done around truck driver safety.

“Syndemics of Occupational Safety: The Case of U.S. Long-Haul Truck Drivers” Tuesday, June 16 | 12 - 1 PM 

Presenter: Dr. Lemke is an Assistant Professor in Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences at the UTHealth School of Public Health (San Antonio), and he is affiliated with the Southwest Center for Occupational & Environmental Health.

*Additional details and registration to follow.

📢  5th Annual Firearm Injury Prevention Conference

We’re excited to announce a special addition to the upcoming Firearm Injury & Prevention Conference: Sharing Evidence and Connecting Communities on June 5, 2026.

🎤 Keynote speaker Cedric Dark, MD, MPH, FACEP will be joining us for a live book signing during the conference.

📚 The first 100 in-person attendees will receive a complimentary copy of: Under the Gun: An ER Doctor’s Cure for America’s Gun Epidemic

Join ER physician, author, and executive producer Dr. Cedric Dark for an immersive presentation that bridges clinical reality and cinematic storytelling. Drawing from the frontline medical insights of his book, Under the Gun, and the powerful themes of the short film Homecoming, Dr. Dark explores how deeply rooted traditions and structural failures shape America's relationship with violence. This session moves past statistics to illuminate the lived experiences of victims, survivors, families, and physicians, challenging audiences to rewrite the script for a safer future.

Registration is filling quickly—secure your spot today.

Register (In-Person): Click for In-Person Registration
Register (Virtual): Click for Virtual Registration

Next VIPR Quarterly Meeting

Pending- September 4, In-person

If you would like to attend or want more information, email info@texasvipr.com

Upcoming conferences of interest:

📢 Society for Prevention Research (SPR), May 26 - 29, 2026, Washington, DC

📢 American Academy of Pediatric (AAP), Oct 2 - 6, 2026, San Diego, CA

📢 American Public Health Association (APHA), Nov 1 - 4, 2026, San Antonio, TX

📢 American Society for Criminology (ASC), Nov 18 - 21, 2026, Chicago, IL

📢 Injury Free Coalition for Kids Conference, Dec 4 - 6, 2026, Ft. Lauderdale, FL

📢 National Research Conference for the Prevention of Firearm-Related Harms, Dec 9 - 11, 2026, Baltimore, MD

Do you have something you would like distributed or announced?

Please send all requests to info@texasvipr.com, subject line: VIPR Newsletter.

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