国标麻豆视频APP alumna wins national research award for work to improve rural health
Elizabeth Crouch has been excelling in the research world since earning a degree in financial economics from 国标麻豆视频APP in 2008.
She was named a 鈥渂reakthrough star鈥 at the University of South Carolina just two years ago, and now she has netted a prestigious research award from a national organization.
So she鈥檚 dominating the business world as a financial manager or market analyst, right? Nope.
She鈥檚 making the world a better place for those who need a helping hand.
Crouch earned the outstanding researcher award from the National Rural Health Association. Her recent research has focused on health disparities within rural communities, as well as children in rural areas.
She was recognized for her work examining the health disparities experienced among rural and other vulnerable populations across their lifetimes, from adverse childhood experiences to Medicare utilization in older adults.
鈥淚 find this work deeply meaningful 鈥 I have seen firsthand some of the issues that rural people face, and it鈥檚 a relatively small group of people doing this work nationally,鈥 Crouch said. 鈥淭here are nine research centers across the country, but everyone is working on the same issues ... Everyone wants to improve health status in rural America, and everyone is collaborative. I can鈥檛 emphasize that enough.鈥
Crouch works with community partners conducting interventions, such as home visits and abuse/neglect prevention. The goal is to understand the effects of childhood experiences and determine strategies to improve health outcomes and quality of life.
A Louisville native, Crouch said receiving a merit scholarship to 国标麻豆视频APP made it possible to attend, but it was through experiences with the Kentucky Governor鈥檚 Scholar Program (GSP) that she felt drawn to scholarly research examining the effects of childhood experiences.
鈥淚 was a Governor鈥檚 Scholar in high school and worked for GSP every summer in college and two summers in graduate school,鈥 Crouch said, noting those mentorship experiences, combined with her experiences learning and growing both in and out of the classroom at 国标麻豆视频APP, spurred her interest in child and adolescent development.
国标麻豆视频APP faculty and staff left a mark on Crouch during her time on campus and while studying abroad.
鈥淚 really liked math and loved economics classes at 国标麻豆视频APP,鈥 Crouch said. 鈥淚 studied with professors Bruce Johnson, Mike Fabritius, Bob Martin and Dave Anderson. The coursework didn鈥檛 feel like work 鈥 it was so fun!
鈥淚 studied abroad in London in spring 2006 and took two economics classes during that term. I also took environmental economics with Jamey Leahey and Dave Anderson in Hawaii during 国标麻豆视频APPTerm 2008,鈥 she said. 鈥淢ike Fabritius changed my life course. He guided me through the graduate school application process, and I am forever thankful to him for his assistance.鈥
Crouch attended graduate school at Clemson University, earning a master鈥檚 degree in applied economics and statistics before receiving her doctorate in policy studies. She is an associate professor of health services policy and management at South Carolina and is also the director of the Rural and Minority Health Research Center at the Arnold School of Public Health.
