Esther Spindler
Esther Spindler
Biography:
Esther Spindler is a DrPH Candidate in Population & Family Health and Director of the Structural Determinants and Social Transitions among Adolescents and Young Adults in Rakai, Uganda (SSTAR) Project. Esther uses mixed-method research to examine how gender, social and structural inequities shape marriage, and sexual and reproductive health outcomes of adolescents and young people. Esther cares deeply about bridging public health research to practice, and addressing the Global North/Global South inequities in knowledge production, collaboration and dissemination within global health. Esther previously worked as a Research Officer at Georgetown University's Institute for Reproductive Health (IRH), where she led gender-based violence, family planning and couples counseling studies in Uganda, Jordan and Togo. Esther has also worked on HIV prevention research with Latinx migrant populations in Washington D.C, as well as gender-based violence research with Promundo in Brazil. Esther is American, Brazilian and French and fluent in French, Portuguese, Spanish and English. Esther was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala (2009-2012), has a M.S. in Development Management from the School of International Service (SIS), at American University and a B.S. in Political Science from New York State University (SUNY) at Oneonta.
Research Interests:
Global health policy; HIV/AIDS; Sexual and reproductive health; Gender; Adolescent and youth
Awards and Fellowships:
Columbia Population Research Fellow (2019-2022)
PRB-NIH U.S. Policy Communication Training Program Fellow (2021-2022)
Initiative for Maximize Student Initiative Fellow (IMSD; 2020-2021)
P.E.O. Scholar Award (2020-2021)
Proposed Dissertation:
Uncovering the relationship between international aid, policies and norms in driving adolescent marriage declines in southcentral Uganda