BFRR Lab Research Team

Sheretta Butler-Barnes is a developmental psychologist and has the expertise and scholarly work on the impact of racism and the use of culturally strength-based assets on the educational and health outcomes of Black American families. She is currently an Associate Professor at the WUSTL Brown School of Social Work. Before coming to the Brown School, Butler-Barnes was a National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Michigan's School of Education affiliated with the Center for the Study of Black Youth in Context. Butler-Barnes received her Ph.D. and MA from Wayne State University in psychology and a BS in psychology from Michigan State University.

Graduate Research Assistants

JaNiene is a third-year Ph.D. student in Social Work at the Brown School and a National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) T32 Predoctoral Fellow. Her research focuses on examining risk and protective factors associated with mental health and behavioral (mostly substance use) outcomes among adolescents and emerging adults (ages 18-29) through an intersectional lens. Her work is also driven by building evidence that informs tailored interventions for populations disproportionately affected by mental health and substance use problems, particularly Black Americans. JaNiene is currently involved in multiple research projects that focus on mental health, substance use and substance use disorders, race-related stress, intersectionality, and resilience.

JaNiene received a BS in Health and Human Performance from the University of Memphis and an MS in Health Education from Texas A&M University. She is also a Certified Health Education Specialist and Certified Personal and Executive Coach. 

Ivy is a second-year Ph.D. student in the Division of Computational and Data Sciences Program and a Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity & Equality (CRE2) Fellow. She is interested in better diagnosing mental health disorders (generalized anxiety disorder, binge eating disorder, and depression) among female African American emerging adults (ages 18-29) utilizing data science methods and applications. Ivy is currently involved in a research project that focuses on black families and racial violence. She received a BS in both Mathematics and Computer Science from Tougaloo College.

Emani Sargent is a current doctoral student at the Brown School of Social Work. She is a graduate of Miami University of Ohio with a BS in Family Studies and Human Development (2013) and a master's degree in Social Work (2015). Emani is broadly interested in research focused on achieving health equality for racial, sexual, and gender minorities with a particular focus on sexual health, mental health, and overall wellness. Her work examines HIV prevention and care interventions across the continuum. This includes exploring structural, social, and cultural determinants of health and well-being. She is interested in looking at the impact of stress and racism on health outcomes, how the family influences health, and the significance of social support.