Instructors:

Munim Deen, MPH CPH

As a project coordinator, Mr. Deen worked with a variety of tribal health partners throughout Oklahoma on projects related to accreditation. Additionally, he has remained an active part of the Oklahoma Public Health Training Center’s efforts to develop courses related to American Indian/Alaska Native health.

Currently, he is the main analyst for a variety of CDC-funded projects undertaken by the Oklahoma Area Tribal Epidemiology Center and the Southern Plains Tribal Health Board.

As a part of his work, he remains up to date on research and findings related to American Indian/Alaska Native health issues. He makes use of various analytical tools and techniques in his work, including geographic information systems (GIS).

He holds an MPH in epidemiology and a BS in microbiology, both from the University of Oklahoma. He is also certified in public health (CPH) by the National Board of Public Health Examiners

Amanda Janitz, PhD, MPH, BSN

Dr. Janitz is currently an Assistant Professor of Research in Epidemiology in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology at the University of Oklahoma College of Public Health. She works with the Southern Plains Tribal Health Board, the Association of American Indian Physicians, and Region VI South Central Public Health Training Center.

During her doctoral program, she worked with these organizations as a Graduate Research Assistant and consultant. Her dissertation research, which she completed in 2015, focused on the association between congenital anomalies and any childhood cancer and the association between air pollution and childhood acute leukemia.

Her areas of expertise include the epidemiology of childhood cancer, public health program evaluation, and epidemiologic methods. After graduating in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, she worked as a pediatric oncology nurse. In 2009, she completed a Master of Public Health in the University of Oklahoma College of Public Health with a focus on childhood cancer.

Upon graduation, she worked as a Research Nurse in pediatric oncology before returning to the University of Oklahoma in 2010 to complete her doctorate with a goal of contributing to cancer research in Oklahoma.

Tamara James, PhD

Tamara James, PhD a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma currently serves as the national data coordinator for the Division of Behavioral Health within the Office of Clinical and Preventive Services (OCPS), Indian Health Service (IHS).

Prior to joining IHS, Dr. James led community-based efforts at the Southern Plains Tribal Health Board to promote development and capacity building directly related to improving American Indian and Alaska Native men's health.

Dr. James completed an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) policy fellowship with the Office of Science Policy and Analysis (OSPA) in the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) where she focused on minority health disparities.

Dr. James received her Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Sciences from New York University School of Medicine where she was awarded a Ford Foundation Pre-Doctoral Fellowship by The National Academies.