Director, Center for Service Learning
Associate Director, Community Participation and Research, Center for Community Health and Development
Associate Professor & Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of Applied Behavioral Science
University of Kansas
Lawrence, KS, USA
Email: jomellaw@ku.edu | Phone: (785) 864-1563
Website: https://communityhealth.ku.edu/jomella-watson-thompson
Interest in CDE Collaborative
My interest in community development education relates to how we can build the capacity of both campus and community partners to support community development efforts, including through the training of students and community members.
Quick Bio
Dr. Thompson holds a Ph.D. in Behavioral Psychology and a Masters of Urban Planning from the University of Kansas. She applies behavioral science methods and interventions to improve how communities address issues related to community health and development. Her research has focused on neighborhood development, healthy youth development, and prevention, including substance abuse and violence prevention. Dr. Thompson supports community capacity-building efforts to address social determinants of health through community-based participatory research in urban neighborhoods and disparate communities. She has researched the effects of community-based processes and intervention to promote mobilization and change in communities. Dr. Thompson has extensive experience providing training, technical support and evaluation for community-based initiatives. Dr. Thompson has co-authored articles on community capacity-building, youth development, and prevention. She has been a consultant for several community coalitions and community-based initiatives.