HealthPARC

The Health Promotion and Risk Reduction Research Center

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About Us
 

Drs. Mwendwa, Thomas, and Sims are Howard University Alumni who, in accordance with the University’s mission, are “committed to producing distinguished and compassionate graduates who seek solutions to human and social problems in the United States and throughout the world,” particularly through application of knowledge from the field of psychology and related disciplines.

  

Denée Thomas Mwendwa, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor at Howard University in the Department of Psychology. She is a graduate of Trinity College in Washington, DC, where she received her AB in Political Science.  She obtained her Master’s and Doctorate degrees in Clinical Psychology from Howard University in 1999 and 2003.  She completed her internship at Howard University Hospital in 2001. Dr. Mwendwa has a specialization in behavioral health medicine with a focus on cardiovascular disease and the psychological sequelae that increase the risk for CVD in African Americans. Her goals are to reduce risk and influence the overall treatment of the disease. Current research projects include psychological factors associated with behavior change in African Americans at-risk for chronic kidney disease and using motivational interviewing to increase behavior change in overweight and obese African Americans. The hallmark of her approach to psychological and physical health is recognizing and embracing the unique experiences of all people and incorporating these experiences to promote overall wellness. Dr. Mwendwa teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in Abnormal Psychology, Introduction to Clinical Psychology, Individual Psychotherapy, and Group Psychotherapy. She is a member of the American Psychological Association and the International Society on Hypertension in Blacks.
Throughout her career as a licensed clinical psychologist, Dr. Joneis Thomas has promoted health and wellness by combining clinical practice, consultation, teaching, research, and coaching in medical center and academic settings as well as in private practice.  Currently an assistant professor in the Psychology Department at Howard University, she has special interests in behavioral medicine (obesity and weight management, promotion of wellness behaviors, pre-surgical psychological evaluation for weight loss surgery candidates) and positive psychology.  Current research projects include biopsychosocial predictors of obesity in African Americans and psychometric analysis of health behavior assessments in minority samples.  Future research efforts will incorporate the development and evaluation of interventions designed to improve health and promote sustainable health behaviors.  Dr. Thomas is a 1992 graduate of Howard University where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in psychology.  She obtained her Master's and Doctorate degrees in clinical psychology from the University of Virginia in 1995 and 1997 respectively.  She completed an internship at the Medical College of Virginia and a two-year fellowship in occupational health psychology at Duke University Medical Center/Duke Employee Assistance Program.  She is a member of the American Psychological Association.
Dr. Regina Sims is an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at Howard University. She is a 2007 graduate of the doctoral program in Neuropsychology at Howard. She obtained an M.S. in Experimental Psychology from Villanova University in 2002 and a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Delaware in 2000.  After obtaining her Ph.D., Dr. Sims completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development at Duke University where her interests in cardiovascular risk and cognitive function blended with the area of minority cognitive aging. Currently, her research examines the impact of health factors on variability in cognitive function in African Americans.  More specifically, her work has focused on exploring the impact of cardiovascular risk factors and other health factors on cognitive abilities such as verbal and working memory, perceptual speed, and inductive reasoning in this understudied population.  She has also investigated how demographic and psychosocial influences such as education, social support, personality traits, and stress may contribute to within-group variability in cognitive aging.  One of Dr. Sims’s major goals is to identify critical periods and risk factors within middle age African Americans that predict cognitive dysfunction later in life. Dr. Sims teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in Statistics, Research Methods, and Personality. She is a member of the Gerontological Society of America and the American Psychosomatic Society.