Mary Ann Pentz , Ph.D. Professor Dr. Pentz is director of the Center for Prevention Policy Research and professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine. For over 20 years, her research and program development have focused on community and policy approaches to preventing tobacco, alcohol, drug use, and violence in youth. Her findings contributed to the formulation of a U.S. Senate bill and use of evidence-based criteria for appropriating funds for prevention under the Safe and Drug Free Schools Act.
Two of her programs, Project STAR (a school and community-based program for drug abuse prevention) and TOPP (a tobacco and drug policy program for schools), have received awards from Congress and the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention and are on the National Registry of Effective Programs. Project STAR is the longest-running drug prevention trial in the U.S., having followed youth from early adolescence into mid-adulthood and their own school-age children. A recent program, Media Buzz (the first media literacy program designed specifically for drug abuse prevention), is expected to be considered for the National Registry next year. A new prevention trial, STEP, involves 24 cities in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Massachusetts, and Missouri. Findings are showing successful adoption and diffusion of evidence-based drug prevention in these cities.
In addition, Dr. Pentz has chaired the NIDA Epidemiology and Prevention study section, been a member of Attorney General Reno's Task Force on Methamphetamine and the NIH Peer Review Oversight Group.Research Interests
Development and testing of school and community-based prevention interventions for adolescent smoking and other drug use.
Degrees
Syracuse University, PHD, 1978
Syracuse University, MA, 1976
Professional Experience
Assistant Professor, Psychology Dept., University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN., 1979 - 1983
Associate Professor, School of Medicine, Dept. Of Preventive Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, 1983 - 1998
Selected Publications Pentz, M. A. (2003). Evidence-based prevention: Characteristics, impact, and future direction. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 35(SARC Suppl. 1), 143-152.
Pentz, M. A. (2004). A critical unresolved issue in transdisciplinary prevention research. Substance Use & Misuse, 39(10-12), 2079-2080.
Pentz, M. A. (2004). Form follows function: Designs for prevention effectiveness and diffusion research. Prevention Science, 5(1), 23-29.
Pentz, M. A., Mares, D., Schinke, S., & Rohrbach, L. (2004). Political science, public policy, and drug use prevention. Substance Use & Misuse, 39(10-12), 1821-1865.
Weiner, M. D., Pentz, M. A., Skara, S. N., Li, C., Chou, C.-P., & Dwyer, J. H. (2004). Relationship of substance use and associated predictors of violence in early, middle, and late adolescence. Journal of Child & Adolescent Substance Abuse, 13(4), 97-117.
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