Research interests include: the design and evaluation of health promotion programs for special populations, particularly cardiovascular and cancer prevention interventions for African Americans; understanding the relationship between ethnicity and health behaviors; school-based health promotion programs; substance use prevention and harm reduction and motivational interviewing for chronic disease prevention. Studies include: Health Body Healthy Spirit, an NHLBI funded intervention to increase physical activity, fruits, and vegetables among African Americans recruited through Black churches using motivational interviewing; GO GIRLS, an NHLBI funded study to develop an obesity prevention program for overweight African American females; Body and Soul, an NIH/ACS collaboration to disseminate proven cancer control interventions using lay health advisors; and a FOGARTY/NIH study to develop smoking prevention programs for South African Youth.