At the heart of UT School of Social Work lies a powerhouse institute that’s changing lives through innovative behavioral health research.
For more than two decades, Dr. Mary Marden Velasquez and Dr. Kirk von Sternberg have led the Health Behavior Research and Training Institute with a clear mission: developing evidence-based interventions that address critical health challenges.
The pair’s collaborative leadership has established HBRT as a national leader in prevention science, particularly in addressing substance use disorders and preventing alcohol- and substance-exposed pregnancies. With over 20 years of continued federal funding, totaling over $35 million, their work spans behavioral interventions — from initial concept to widespread implementation.
This commitment to practical application is evident in their current CDC-funded project, “Engaging Social Workers in Preventing Alcohol- and Other SubstanceExposed Pregnancies” (2022-2026). The project builds on their extensive work in substance use prevention, training social workers nationwide to implement effective screening and brief intervention approaches.
Von Sternberg, HBRT co-director and UT Social Work professor, brings methodological expertise that complements Velasquez’s clinical background. “Our interdisciplinary approach allows us to address complex health challenges from multiple angles,” he explains. “We develop interventions that are both scientifically sound and practically applicable.”
The institute’s work also includes critical contemporary issues, such as the CDC-funded project “Engaging Social Workers in Boosting COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake” (2021-2024). This initiative demonstrates how HBRT’s evidence-based behavioral change models can be adapted to address emerging public health challenges.
Their long-standing collaboration recently welcomed Dr. Danielle Parrish as HBRT’s associate director. Parrish, who completed her postdoctoral fellowship at HBRT under Velasquez and von Sternberg’s mentorship, brings additional expertise in adolescent behavioral health. Von Sternberg and Parrish currently serve as coprincipal investigators on the NIDAfunded study “CHOICES-TEEN,” which adapts HBRT’s successful CHOICES intervention for adolescent women in the juvenile justice system. In addition to the CHOICES-TEEN study, Parrish also has five other active grants totaling more than $5.5 million in funding.