Jackson Higginbottom, MPH

Yale School of Public Health

Jackson is a public health practitioner working at the intersection of health communications, behavior change, and program evaluation.

My Resume

Education

2018 – 2020

Yale School of Public Health (YSPH), New Haven, Connecticut
M.P.H., Social and Behavioral Sciences

Thesis: The Associations of Parental Religious Affiliation and Their LGBTQ Children’s Mental Health.

2013 – 2018

Oklahoma Christian University, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
B.S., Biology with a minor in Psychology

Selected Research & Leadership Experience

2024– Present

2022 – Present

President & CEO, Board of Directors
Fundación Manos Juntas Free Medical Clinic, Oklahoma City, OK

  • Developed and implemented a new strategic plan, including a new volunteer training, and improved patient safety protocols to better serve 3000+ patients

  • Established new partnerships with community and academic organizations, resulting in increased volunteer and donor engagement and expanded outreach efforts

  • Streamlined clinic operations and implemented new technology solutions, resulting in increased efficiency, reduced costs, and improved patient care

  • Developed and led a strong and dedicated team of staff, 300+ volunteers, and 6+ medical providers, resulting in improved collaboration and communication

  • Led the organization through a successful fundraising campaign, resulting in a significant increase in revenue and expanded services to underserved communities

2021 – 2024

Program Administrator, Health Communications & Evaluation
Community Alliance for Research & Engagement (CARE) and Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center (PRC), Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT

Projects

  • Develop and strengthen relationships with New Haven Health Department, community-based organizations, and partners throughout the state

    Synthesizes the latest CDC/FDA guidance, research, and best practices regarding COVID-19, flu, and other emerging public health threats

    Creates materials to inform program participants and residents on the latest CDC/FDA guidance related to COVID-19, flu, and other emerging public health threats

    Identifies programmatic bottlenecks for CARE/community partners and creates innovative solutions to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of our work

    Utilized the Program Impact Pathways (PIP) evaluation framework to identify outreach coordination as an area to support community partners in their response to COVID-19

    Established the New Haven Vaccine Clinic and Outreach Collaboration Tool to increase collaboration among community partners to improve outreach outcomes

    Created a dashboard that integrates data from the New Haven Vaccine Clinic and Outreach Collaboration Tool to visualize gaps & hotspots in vaccine clinic & outreach locations

    Developed a COVID-19 rumor log for community members to submit vaccine rumors circulating in the local community to inform vaccine outreach of CARE & partners

    Work closely with PI, directors, and other staff to identify successful operational strategies to support community partners in COVID-19 response

    Responsible for preparing and reporting metrics to funders, including success and challenges regarding COVID-19/Flu communications and outreach

    Uses advanced statistical & epidemiological knowledge to provide support in analyzing, reviewing, & synthesizing data

  • Delivered fellowship trainings to program participants and partner staff, including local health department and a federally qualified health center

    Designed program recruitment materials, identified effective recruitment strategies, & oversaw the recruitment of participants

    Developed the core, 4-module program curriculum, including the objectives & content

    Developed a series of 9 booster training sessions, including the program curriculum objectives, content, & evaluation plan

    Serves as a public health content matter expert for the program participants

    Creates communications materials to inform program participants and residents on the latest CDC/FDA guidance related to COVID-19, flu, & emerging public health threats

    Assesses participants’ experience throughout the program and makes adjustments to processes as necessary

    Developed processes for ongoing data collection and reporting, including the curriculum feedback evaluation plan for the program booster training sessions using Qualtrics

  • Oversees the evaluation of the City-wide Plan, including managing timelines, data collection strategies, deliverables, and evaluation staff

    Designed data collection databases & data collection tools for 50+ indicators

    Uses advanced statistical knowledge to provide support in analyzing and reviewing data

    Works closely with directors and community partners to ensure project is within scope of the contract and supporting partner needs

  • Conducted formative research to inform the development of the PRC COVID-19 Vaccine Messaging Toolkit

    Designed the PRC COVID-19 Vaccine Messaging Toolkit, including creation of key messages guided by behavior change theories, designed 40+ vaccine clinic posters, 40+ social media graphics, and developed the “How to Use” guide

    Worked closely with Griffin Hospital, the Connecticut Department of Public Health and Naugatuck Valley Health District to incorporate their needs and feedback into toolkit

    Identified dissemination strategies for the Messaging Toolkit to community partners

    Develop IRB submissions for PRC research studies in collaboration with PI and directors

2020 – 2021

Research Associate, Data and Evaluations
Wholesome Wave, Bridgeport, CT

2020 – 2021

Research Associate II, Evaluation & Communications
Community Alliance for Research & Engagement (CARE), New Haven, CT

2019 – 2020

Health Communications & Evaluation Fellow
Community Alliance for Research & Engagement (CARE), New Haven, CT

2018 – 2020

Vaccine Demand Strategist, Connecticut Department of Health
CDC Foundation, Hartford, CT

  • Develops and implements strategic communications plans to promote childhood vaccination, addressing health disparities in high Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) communities.

  • Creates and manages integrated communication campaigns, including digital content, media relations, social media strategies, and public events/webinars to enhance vaccine awareness and uptake.

  • Draft key messages, talking points, and presentations for public health officials and partners to support community engagement and vaccine confidence.

Graduate Research Assistant
Esteem Research Group, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT

Publications & Presentations

Published/In Press

  • Morales, S., Vicente, G., LaMonaca, K., Rios, J., Cunningham, S.D., Higginbottom, J., Mathios, E., Werlin, S., Cramer, J., Santilli, A.S., O'Connor Duffany, K. (2023). The Implementation of a Nutrition Intervention in Food Pantries: The Spirit of SWAP. Health Promotion Practice.

  • Santilli, A.S., LaMonaca, K., Carr, K., Rue, B., D’Angelo, K., Higginbottom, J., Morales, S., Taylor, M.A., Vicente, G.A., Lin-Schweitzer, A., O’Connor Duffany, K. (2022). Advancing Health Equity: An Innovative Program for Building Community Engagement in Research. Progress in Community Health Partnerships: Research, Education, and Action. (Forthcoming.) 6 Sep 2022.  

  • Jackson SD, Wagner KR, Yepes M, Harvey TD, Higginbottom J, Pachankis JE. (2022). A pilot test of a treatment to address intersectional stigma, mental health, and HIV risk among gay and bisexual men of color. Psychotherapy. 2022 Mar;59(1):96-112. doi: 10.1037/pst0000417. 

  • Balasuriya L, Santilli A, Morone J, Ainooson J, Roy B, Njoku A, Mendiola-Iparraguirre A, O'Connor Duffany, K., Macklin B., Higginbottom, J., Fernández-Ayala C., Vicente, G., Venkatesh, A. (2021). COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance and Access Among Black and Latinx Communities. JAMA Network Open. Oct 1;4(10):e2128575. 

  • Higginbottom, J. (2020). The Association of Parental Religious Affiliation and Their LGBTQ Children’s Mental Health: A Study of Parents. Public Health Theses. 2015.

 

Book Chapters and Other Publications

 

Conference Presentations

  • Higginbottom, J., Beaulieu, A., Treu, J., Ayettey, R.G., Foster, J.S., Santilli, A.S., Comerford, B.P., O’Connor Duffany, K., Perez-Escamilla, R. (2022). Developing Theory-based Messaging to Increase COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence and Uptake in the Lower Naugatuck Valley and Beyond. Connecticut Public Health Association Annual Conference 2022. 

  • Higginbottom, J., Macklin, B., Schwartz, E., Beaulieu, A., Cohen, M., Duran-Becerra, B., Cookson Muhammad, T., Taylor, M., LaMonaca, K., Vitalis, D., O’Connor Duffany, K., Santilli, A.S. (2022). Advancing Vaccine Equity: A Community-engaged Approach to Increasing Confidence and Uptake of COVID-19 Vaccines. Connecticut Public Health Association Annual Conference 2022.  

  • Beaulieu, A., Higginbottom, J., Duran-Becerra, B., Macklin, B., Ainooson, J., Sude, L., Vicente, M., Logan, B., Pérez-Escamilla, R., LaMonaca, L., O’Connor Duffany, K., Santilli, A., Vitalis, D., Schwartz, E. (2022). Utilizing the Program Impact Pathways (PIP) Framework in New Haven for COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence and Uptake. Connecticut Public Health Association Annual Conference 2022. 

  • Vicente, M., Beaulieu, A., Higginbottom, J., Macklin, B., Cookson Muhammad, T., Vicente, M., Duran-Becerra, B., Ainooson, J., Sude, L., Barnes, S., Kelly, L., LaMonaca, K., O’Connor Duffany, K., Santilli, A., Vitalis, D., Pérez-Escamilla, R. Cross-sector Collaboration as a Response to Public Health Threats: Increasing COVID Vaccine Confidence and Uptake in New Haven. Connecticut Public Health Association Annual Conference 2022. 

  • Jackson, S.D., Wagner, K.R., Yepes, M., Harvey, T.D., Higginbottom, J.T., and Pachankis, J.E. (2021). Preliminary efficacy of a treatment to address intersectional stigma, mental health, and HIV risk among Black and Latino gay and bisexual men. Annals of Behavioral Medicine(55): S542-S542 

  • Morales, S., Paltin, D., Dew, K.C., Wagner, K., Higginbottom, J., Funaro, M.C. (2021). Bi Invisibility in Primary Care: Bi+ Health Disparities, Gaps in Healthcare, and Recommendations for Healing the Gaps. International Bisexuality Research Conference. 

  • Higginbottom, J. & Moore, L. (2016). CRISPR/Cas9 Mediated Gene Edit of Holocentric Binding Protein 2 in Caenorhabditis elegans. Oklahoma Academy of Sciences Annual Technical Meeting 2016.