Samantha Smith

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Research Analyst, Nevada Institute for Children's Research and Policy

Program Manager, Nevada Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program

Research Associate, Nevada Minority Health and Equity Coalition

Expertise: Public health, Lead poisoning prevention, Lead exposures, Health equity, COVID-19 vaccine equity

Biography

Samantha Smith is a research analyst at the UNLV School of Public Health's Nevada Institute for Children’s Research and Policy (NICRP), where she collaborates with various agencies and community partners to conduct research and coordinate projects aimed at addressing health disparities in Nevada.

Through her role at NICRP, Smith also serves as the program manager for the Nevada Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, which promotes lead-safe home environments for Nevada children. Additionally, Smith conducts research for the Nevada Minority Health and Equity Coalition, and she has co-led and coordinated the Nevada Vaccine Equity Collaborative since February 2021.

As part of her commitment to advancing health equity and community well-being, Smith is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Public Health, focused on global and environmental initiatives, at UNLV.

Education

M.S., Public Health, Touro University
B.S., Physiology, University of Arizona

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child development, health & medicine

Samantha Smith In The News

UNLV-based effort expands testing and outreach on childhood lead exposure

Based at UNLV’s School of Public Health, the program was first launched about two decades ago through the Southern Nevada Health District. It was the first time Nevada had a dedicated effort to track children’s blood lead levels and understand where and how exposure was happening in Clark County. For five or six years, the program quietly did its work, collecting data and raising alarms where needed — until federal funding dried up and Nevada’s effort, like many others around the country, was shuttered.Then Flint happened.