Associate Professor, Public Health
My educational experience spans several disciplines. I earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from The Ohio State University, a master's degree in social work from the University of Chicago, and a doctorate in public health from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. My dissertation investigated the factors influencing the quality of assistance offered to female survivors of sexual abuse in Nairobi, Kenya. My primary research interests are investigating and combating violence against women in East Africa. This involves the establishment of legislation and interventions for survivors of sexual violence, the eradication of damaging cultural practices such as widow inheritance, and the enhancement of the quality of post-rape care services. My current studies investigate the prevention and response to sexual abuse against school-aged girls in Kenya, including the effects of COVID-19 on its spread, as well as the effect of climate change on intimate partner violence.
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About Leso Munala, PhD
My educational experience spans several disciplines. I earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from The Ohio State University, a master's degree in social work from the University of Chicago, and a doctorate in public health from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. My dissertation investigated the factors influencing the quality of assistance offered to female survivors of sexual abuse in Nairobi, Kenya. My primary research interests are investigating and combating violence against women in East Africa. This involves the establishment of legislation and interventions for survivors of sexual violence, the eradication of damaging cultural practices such as widow inheritance, and the enhancement of the quality of post-rape care services. My current studies investigate the prevention and response to sexual abuse against school-aged girls in Kenya, including the effects of COVID-19 on its spread, as well as the effect of climate change on intimate partner violence.
| Present | Associate Professor, Public Health, St. Catherine University ‐ Public Health Department | |
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Disciplines
Research Interests
Grants
| 2023 - Present | Exploring the Intersection of climate change and violence against women and girls in Kenya |
| St. Catherine University | |
| Role: Co-Principal Investigator | |
| $19,400 | |
| 2021 - Present | Piloting a social justice training program in the MPH Curriculum |
| St. Catherine University | |
| Academic Excellence Grant | |
| Role: Co-Principle Investigator | |
| 2020 - 2021 | Understanding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Gender Based Violence (GBV): A focus on school aged girls in Kenya |
| St. Catherine University | |
| GHR Innovative Scholarship (GHR) Grant | |
| Role: Principal Investigator | |
| $11,500 | |
| 2020 - 2020 | Understanding the differential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic among immigrant and refugee communities |
| St. Catherine University | |
| GHR Innovative Scholarship (GHR) Grant | |
| Role: Co-Investigator | |
| $15,000 | |
| 2019 - 2020 | Exploring the Social Context and Drivers of Age Disparate Transactional Sex Relationships in Mutomo and Ikutha Districts of Kitui South Sub County |
| St. Catherine University | |
| GHR Innovative Scholarship (GHR) Grant | |
| Role: Principal Investigator | |
| $15,000 | |
| 2018 - 2019 | An exploration of the sexual cleansing ritual as a public health issue in the Luo community of Kenya |
| St. Catherine University | |
| Academic Professional Development Committee Grant (APDC) | |
| Role: Principal Investigator | |
| $7,500 | |
| 2018 - 2019 | Exploring the community and environmental factors associated with sexual violence against school-aged girls in the Mutomo and Ikutha Districts of Kitui South Sub County, Kenya |
| St. Catherine University | |
| GHR Innovative Scholarship (GHR) Grant | |
| Role: Principal Investigator | |
| $15,000 | |
| 2017 - 2018 | Global Studies course proposal grant |
| St. Catherine University | |
| Health in Ethiopia through Socio-Historical Lenses: Anti-colonialism, Socialism, and Neoliberalism | |
| Role: Co- developer | |
| Colleague(s): Hui Wilcox | |
| $3,000 |
Professional Service and Affiliations
| 2019 - Present | Member, Coalition Against Hepatitis in People of African Origin (CHIPO) group | 2015 - Present | Member, Minnesota Public Health Association | 2009 - Present | Member, American Public Health Association |
Honors and Awards
- 2018- Recognized as a faculty/staff mentor by a student who was nominated for an All- University Student Leadership Award, St. Catherine University
- 2018- Nominated for the St. Catherine University Excellence in Teaching and advising Award
- 2018 -Winner of the Abigail Quigley McCarthy Center for Women Annual Research and Creative Work Award
- 2019- Winner of the St. Catherine University Excellence in Teaching and Advising Award
- 2020- Recognized as a faculty/staff mentor by a student who was nominated for an All- University Student Leadership Award, St. Catherine University
- 2020- Nominated for the St. Catherine University Excellence in Teaching and advising Award
- 2020- Recipient of the St. Catherine GHR-AEG Faculty Fellowship Award
- 2021 Nominee, the St. Catherine University Patricia O’Connor Myser Excellence in Faculty Mentoring Award
- 2021 Nominee, the St. Catherine University Excellence in Teaching and advising Award
- 2022 - Winner, Abigail Quigley McCarthy Center for Women Annual Research and Creative Work Award
- 2022- Nominee, the St. Catherine University Excellence in Teaching and advising Award
- 2022 Nominee, the St. Catherine University Patricia O’Connor Myser Excellence in Faculty Mentoring Award
- 2023 Recognized as a faculty mentor by a student who was nominated for an All- University Student Leadership Award, St. Catherine University
- 2023 Winner- Poster Session Award Minnesota Psychiatric Society Fall Program: Health Impacts of Climate Change
Courses
- CORE 1000W The Reflective Woman
- HLTH 7200-Capstone
- HLTH 2294- Foundations of Public Health ( UG)
- GSJ 3990- Dismantling Racism in South Africa and Namibia (UG)
- HLTH 3250- Global Health(UG)
- HLTH 6360- Violence as a Public Health Issue
- HLTH 6320-Global issues in Women’s Health
- HLTH 6210-Health Communication
- HLTH 6000- Critical Issues in Global Public Health
| 2015 | Ph.D., Public Health, University of Massachusetts Amherst | |
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| 2008 | Master in Social Service Administration, University of Chicago | |
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| 2006 | Bachelor of Arts, Psychology Bachelor of Arts, Psychology Bachelor of Arts, Psychology, The Ohio State University | |
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Contact Information
Phone: 651-690-6265
Email: