_{July 2020}

Kyla Liggett-Creel, PhD, MSW, an assistant clinical professor for the University of Maryland School of Social Work (UMSSW), has been engaged in several efforts to inform the Baltimore community about COVID-19 and to help community members cope with the stress caused by the pandemic.

First, she helped create eight public health videos with the University of Maryland Medical Center’s (UMMC) Department of Family and Community Medicine, UMSSW, HeartSmiles, and Youth Bmore Uprise that were posted to social media.

Additionally, during the first week of May, Liggett-Creel helped coordinate UMSSW social work volunteers, who provided virtual educational sessions to youth in Baltimore, specifically addressing mental health, coping strategies, and healing-centered engagement. This work was done in partnership with the Black Mental Health Alliance and HeartSmiles. 

She also worked with UMSSW to staff a COVID Conversations phone line for UMMC’s Department of Family and Community Medicine to speak with community members managing the stress of COVID-19. Volunteers from UMSSW offer an empathetic ear to community members who are struggling with a COVID-19 diagnosis or are concerned about the impact of the virus on themselves or their families.

In addition to her work in the community, Dr. Liggett-Creel serves as a member of the University of Maryland, Baltimore’s (UMB) Diversity Advisory Council (DAC). To become more knowledgeable about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) issues related to COVID-19, Dr. Liggett-Creel participated in a DEI COVID-19 Accelerator Training program. She and other council members are leading DAC’s DEI Workgroup to provide recommendations to UMB leadership.