UTHealth SPH San Antonio

09/26/2026

Hey, educators! 👋🏼 Are you going to the Texas Public Charter Schools conference? Stop by and say hi to our fabulous faculty member Dr. Hernandez and Stephany Bauer, graduate research assistant for the iCHAMPSS program!

🤝 They are teaming for a presentation full of information on how iCHAMPSS can help your school district choose, implement and maintain evidence-based programs that promote healthy relationships ✨AND✨ are compliant with Texas state law.

You don’t wanna miss this!

👉 Navigating S*x Ed Legislation with iCHAMPSS
🗓️ Monday, Sept. 28, 10 a.m.
📍 Coronado D, Hilton Anatole

📍Or drop by the iCHAMPSS booth ➡️ #560 ⬅️ to say hi to the iCHAMPSS team and learn how the program can help your school district.

🔗 Can’t make it to the conference? Check out iCHAMPSS at and fill out the interest form to get all the details!

09/18/2026

🏃🏻‍♂️When there’s work to be done, Alexander Testa, PhD, doesn’t rest!

✅ 👏 He’s capping off a busy summer filled with researching, writing, publishing, media interviews and lots of local community collaboration. 🤝

👉 Testa was quoted in Axios San Antonio San Antonio Report and PsyPost.org , and continues his extensive work with Bexar County, City of San Antonio - Municipal Government, and Springer Nature

09/11/2026

🤝 Staff from our GRASSROOTS Health project joined the Health Collaborative in serving over 50 Bexar County community members with vital liver cancer education!

💡Our team provided HBV and HCV prevention resources and connected with individuals who shared their lived experiences with HCV.

09/09/2026

GOAL ACHIEVED: Excited to announce that last month the GRASSROOTS program met and exceeded the goals for the project by testing over 1,543 people for the hepatitis virus!

With the aim of preventing liver cancer, the project has operated across two cities, both Houston and San Antonio, and spanned four years, bringing hepatitis testing and vaccinations to high-risk populations.

Faculty members Vanessa Schick Tsai, PhD, and Jack Tsai, PhD, teamed up for the project, providing staffing and operating testing clinics at various housing and service sites. GRASSROOTS is made possible thanks to a grant from the Prevention Institute of Texas (CPRIT).

“We’re incredibly proud of what our team and community partners have accomplished together,” Schick said. “Surpassing this goal means more than reaching a number because every test represents an opportunity for someone to learn their HCV status and, when needed, connected to treatment.

“By expanding access to testing and treatment among some of the communities with the greatest need, we are helping move Texas closer to eliminating HCV. We are grateful to CPRIT for making this important work possible.”

09/03/2026

Jack Tsai, PhD, professor in San Antonio and founding editor-in-chief of npj Mental Health Research, announced that the journal has earned an impressive impact factor score of 9.1 this year.

In recognition of this milestone for the journal, Tsai penned an editorial on the future of human connection in a world being changed by AI.

“When I first took the job as founding editor almost five years ago, I wasn’t sure how challenging it would be to start a brand-new journal. We’ve had to build and overcome hurdles, but nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

- Jack Tsai, PhD, professor and founding editor of npj Mental Health Research

Read more about the journal and Tsai’s editorial at: https://bit.ly/461CVEG

09/03/2026

08/11/2026

📣 The word’s getting out about our faculty experts here in San Antonio!

🎥 Alexander Testa, PhD, talked to ABC 33/40 in Birmingham, Alabama yesterday about the city’s rising rates of gun thefts from vehicles.

🛻🔍 Testa has been researching gun thefts from vehicles for a few years now, working with the San Antonio Police Department to study the cause of high rates of gun thefts in San Antonio and spread public awareness on how gun owners can safely store their weapons.