Maternal and Child Health: It’s a Family Affair

Talya Straughter desires to live in a world where people communicate with one another more deeply, are true to their hearts, stop to taste the sweetness of the honeysuckle, and scribble thank you notes by hand. She would also like, at times, a force field around her bedroom that repels a demanding millennial and a 4th grader. She understands that a part of deep communication is silence and separation. As a mental health provider for the Veterans at G.V. Sonny Montgomery in Jackson, MS she is collaborating with staff to integrate mental health services as a component of primary healthcare. She also provides mental health training and consultation through her business, Garden of Confidence, LLC. Talya holds the credentials of National Certified Counselor, Licensed Professional Counselor, and Board Certified Tele-Mental Health Counselor.When Talya is not consulting, staffing or collaborating with someone on the journey of improving their mental health, you may find her whipping up a dish, lounging with a book cracked open, or being poured into by her mentors.#justakidfromyazoo, Talya began her educational journey in Yazoo City, MS. She then obtained a bachelors in Communication Disorders and a masters in Rehabilitation Counseling from Jackson State University. Due to her love of learning, she acquired a masters in Marriage and Family Counseling and a doctorate in Professional Counseling from Mississippi College.

Dr. Marinelle Payton is the Chair and Professor, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics; Principal Investigator and Director of the Jackson Heart Study Graduate Training and Education Center and the Center of Excellence in Minority Health, and Health Disparities/Institute of Epidemiology and Health Services Research (funded by the National Institutes of Health) at Jackson State University (JSU) School of Public Health. She is a physician with specialty training in Neurological Sciences, Surgery, Radiology, Epidemiology, Public Health, and Environmental and Occupational Medicine. She received the combined M.D.-Ph.D. degrees and the M.P.H. and M.S. degrees from Boston University School of Medicine and Harvard School of Public Health. Following clinical training at Yale University and Boston University hospitals, she held hospital and joint academic appointments at Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, MA.

Professor Mohammad Shahbazi served Jackson State University (JSU) in various teaching and administrator capacities from 1999 through 2021. In his recent capacity as a dean, he led a team of faculty/staff/students and successfully established the first accredited School of Public Health in the State of Mississippi and the first such school among the HBCUs. Working alongside the late Dr. Aaron Shirley, Dr. Shahbazi’s health initiative and action led to a Pan Americans World Health Organization (PAWHO) recognized Community Health Worker Training Program that trained and certified community health workers in Mississippi Delta. Despite his busy teaching and vast administrative responsibilities, Professor Shahbazi earned a Fulbright Scholarship in 2009. Additionally, he brought to the Public Health Program/School through his active grantsmanship as a PI, CO-PI, Director, Manager, or team member millions of grant money over the years. His most recent grant was awarded by Kellogg Foundation with the primary goal to establish a center of excellence for breastfeeding in Mississippi.  Dr. Shahbazi is nationally and internationally known and has thus become a critical contributor to JSU’s success and image both at home and abroad, especially in the area of public health. Professor Shahbazi’s work in Mississippi has been featured in the local, national, and international media, including Time Magazine in its July 2011 issue.  Professor Shahbazi has a doctorate in Cultural Anthropology from Washington University in St. Louis and a Master’s in Public Health from the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA).