News Archive
July 2009
Congratulations to Christopher Kahler, Ph.D. who was recently promoted to Professor (Research) in the Department of Community Health.
Congratulations to Bettina Hoeppner, Ph.D. who was awarded the Gordis award for her presentation “Daily College Student Drinking Patterns Across the First Year of College” at the Research Society on Alcoholism in San Diego, CA.
Congratulations to Jennifer Tidey, Ph.D. who was recently promoted to Associate Professor (Research) in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior.
March 2009
Damaris Rohsenow, Ph.D., Associate Director of the Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies and Professor (Research) of Community Health, was awarded a 7-year Senior Research Career Scientist award from the Department of Veterans Affairs to start April 1, 2009.
December 2008
Nancy Barnett, Ph.D., Associate Professor (Research), has received a grant from NIAAA for "Contingency Management for Alcohol Abuse Using Transdermal Alcohol Detection" for the period of 9/15/2008 to 8/31/2010 for $262,500 total direct costs.
Don Operario, Ph.D., Associate Professor, gave a presentation in Moscow on the 2008 UN Human Development Report, for which he is the lead author, at a national press conference including meetings with officials from the UN and other international aid groups. The title of this UNHDR is 'Living with HIV in Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States'. The full report is available on the UNDP website.
Anthony Spirito, Ph.D., Professor, has received a grant from NIAAA for "Effects of the Family Check Up on Adolescents with Alcohol-Related Events and their Siblings" as well as a grant from NIDA for "Substance Use Prevention Program for Preadolescents with Psychiatric Disorders."
November 2008
Kristina Jackson, Ph.D., Associate Professor (Research), has received a grant from NIAAA for "Initiation and Progression through Early Drinking Milestones in Underage Drinkers" for the period of 10/1/2008 to 9/30/2013.
October 2008
Peter M. Monti, Ph.D., Professor of Medical Science and Director of the Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, has been named Donald G. Millar Distinguished Professor of Alcohol and Addiction Studies. This honor is bestowed upon Dr. Monti in recognition of his national and international standing in the addictions field, his success as a teacher and mentor, and his service to Brown and the community.
September 2008
The Center for Alcohol & Addiction Studies is proud to announce the launch of
a new distance learning program that will provide addiction treatment providers,
counselors, social workers, nurses, psychologists, and physicians with access to
continuing education courses covering a range of topics relating to advances in
addiction treatment and prevention. For a complete listing of current courses,
as well as additional information about the program,
please go to: http://www.browndlp.org or call 1-401-863-6606.
2008-2009 CAAS Fellows
1st yr. Fellows
Yael Chatav
Nadine Mastroleo
Nichea Spillane
2nd yr. Fellows
Christy Capone
Travis Cook
John Hayes
Lynn Hernandez
Bettina Hoeppner
Adam Leventhal
Molly Magill
Kristen Stone
3rd yr. Fellows
John Hustad
Leila Tarokh
August 2008
Research Achievement Awards are awarded to CAAS staff for travel expenses up to $1000 to present at a conference.
Awardees for 2008:
Andrea Grenga
PI: George Kenna
“Matching 5-HT Genotypes to Serotonergic Medications for Alcoholism”
Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association, March, 2008.
Russell Chaput
PI: Anthony Spirito
“Aggression, Conduct Problems and Deviant Peer Affiliation: Risk Factors for Adolescent Substance Use among an Inpatient Adolescent Population”
Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Association for Psychological Science, May, 2008.
Amy Adolfo
PI: Jennifer Tidey
“Smoking Cues Increase Caffeine Urges in Outpatients with Schizophrenia”
Poster presented at the annual meeting of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence, June, 2008.
July 2008
Don Operario, Ph.D., will be joining the Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies and the Department of Community Health in the Behavioral and Social Sciences Section as an Associate Professor of Medical Science. Dr. Operario’s research addresses the social context of HIV/AIDS transmission and the experiences associated with social inequality.
Damaris Rohsenow, Ph.D., has been awarded a grant titled, “Varenicline and Motivational Advice for Smokers with SUD”, from NIDA for $2,241,000 in total direct costs. Co-Investigators are Drs. Tidey, Martin, Monti, and Swift.
Damaris Rohsenow, Ph.D., has been awarded a grant titled, “Contingent Vouchers for Smoking in Substance Abusers as Adjunct to Nicotine Patch”, from NIDA for $1,914,600 in total direct costs. Co-Investigators are Drs Martin, Tidey, Monti, and McGeary.
Damaris Rohsenow, Ph.D., has been awarded a training grant titled “Substance Abuse Intervention Outcome Research Training” from NIDA for $1,027,850 in total direct costs. This will allow five years of postdoctoral research training in the conduct of intervention research. Co-Directors are Drs. Spirito and Monti.
June 2008
Congratulations to Kristina Jackson, Ph.D., who was recently promoted to Associate Professor (Research) in the Department of Community Health.
April 2008
Christopher Kahler, Ph.D., has received a grant of $1,221,901 total direct costs from the NIAAA for "Mechanisms Linking Alcohol Use and Smoking Relapse Risk" for the period of 4/1/08-3/31/12.
Congratulations to James MacKillop, Ph.D., who was recently appointed as Assistant Professor (Research) at the Center.
Tara White, Ph.D., has been awarded a grant from the NIDA for "Project I.D.E.A.: Imaging Drug Effects on Activation."
March 2008
Research Achievement AwardsStaff members working in the CAAS are eligible for Research Achievement Awards to offset the expense of attending a national conference to present research findings derived from Center grants. Congratulations to Russell Chaput for receiving an award to present “Aggression, Conduct Problems and Deviant Peer Affiliation: Risk Factors for Adolescent Substance Use among an Inpatient Adolescent Population” at the American Psychological Society meeting in May; to Andrea Grenga to present “Matching 5-HT Genotypes to Serotonergic Medications for Alcoholism” to Eastern Psychological Association in March; and to Amy Adolfo to present “Smoking Cues Increase Caffeine Urges in Outpatients with Schizophrenia” to the meeting of the College on Problems in Drug Dependence in June.
Other NewsDamaris Rohsenow, Ph.D., was selected to serve on the VA Research Career Scientist Program Advisory Panel meeting in Washington, D.C. She Also was selected to be a reviewer for National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration, and to have her Cocaine-Specific Coping Skills Training approach considered for inclusion in this program.
October 2007
Brian Borsari, Ph.D., was awarded the 2007 Early Career Research Award by the Addictive Behaviors Special Interest Group (Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies).
September 2007
CAAS Welcomes 1st year Postdoctoral Fellows!NIAAA
Christy Capone, received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Rhode Island.
Travis Cook, received his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, Experimental Psychopathology from San Diego State University/University of California – San Diego.
John Hayes, received his Ph.D. in Epidemiology from the University of Connecticut.
Bettina Hoeppner, received her Ph.D. in Behavioral Science from the University of Rhode Island.
Molly Magill, received her Ph.D. in Social Work Research from Boston College.
Lara Ray, received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Colorado and is a former Brown Intern.
Lynn Hernandez, received her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Florida International University.
Adam Leventhal, received his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Houston and is a former Brown Intern.
Kristen Stone, received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Memphis and is a former Brown Intern.
Christina Lee, Assistant Professor, Community Health
Alicia Justus, Assistant Professor, Community Health
George Kenna, Assistant Professor, DPHB
Jane Metrik, Assistant Professor, Community Health
Daniel Squires, Assistant Professor, Community Health
Tara White, Assistant Professor, Community Health
Nancy Barnett, promoted to Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Human Behavior
Dan Squires, Ph.D., assistant professor of community health (research), received a renewal of the Addiction Technology Transfer Center of New England (ATTC-NE) grant of $2,500,000 for 2007-2012 from SAMHSA.
July 2007
Chad Gwaltney, Ph.D., assistant professor of community health (research), received $356,907 for "Ecological Momentary Assessment of Adolescent Smoking Cessation" from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to run from April 2007 to March 2008. Suzanne Colby, Ph.D., and Christopher Kahler, Ph.D., are co-investigators.
Peter M. Monti, Ph.D., CAAS director, has been elected Vice President (President elect) of the Research Society on Alcoholism.
Peter M. Monti, Ph.D., has recently been appointed to the NIH National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Robert Swift, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry and human behavior and a member of the Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, served as chair of the National Institute on Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network renewal Study Section in March. He was an invited speaker on Bridging Research and Clinical Knowledge in Alcohol Dependence Treatment at the Harvard/Children's Hospital Adolescent Substance Abuse Program in April.