Brandy N. Kelly Pryor, Ph.D., has been named the new director of the Center for Health Equity at the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness. She also will serve as an assistant professor at the University of Louisville School of Public Health and Information Sciences in the Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences.
Sarah Moyer, M.D., M.P.H., interim director of Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness, said Kelly Pryor was selected from among many strong applicants in a nationwide search.
“I’m excited to have Kelly Pryor on board,” said Moyer. “She has a passion for equity issues and a clear vision for the Center for Health Equity. Her knowledge and experience will help us make great strides in becoming a city where everyone has a chance of living a healthy life, no matter where they live, work, play or pray.”
Kelly Pryor comes to Louisville from Texas A&M University, where she was an assistant professor. She also served as an AmeriCorps member in Washington, D.C.; studied global health and determinants on health abroad in Kenya, Tanzania, Haiti, Trinidad, and Barbados; and worked as a PhD student in the Center for Community Health Development at Texas A&M’s School of Rural Public Health.
Her depth of experience in research, evaluation and program management in the field of equity in health extends beyond just local health departments to include the university, state systems, faith-based and community-based organizations. She has managed local and federally funded projects and grant dollars, and evaluated projects in major urban centers, as well as health partnerships in rural areas.
“Everything I’ve done up to this point has prepared me for my work in Louisville,” said Kelly Pryor. “The Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness has been a national leader on issues of health equity. I’m looking forward to building on the work that has already begun here. With the unique partnership between the Department of Public Health and Wellness and the U of L School of Public Health and Information Sciences, I am confident that we can make great strides toward achieving health equity in Louisville and beyond.”
“The first thing that strikes you about Pryor is her contagious enthusiasm,” said Craig Blakely, Ph.D., M.P.H., dean of the University of Louisville School of Public Health and Information Sciences. “She has already engaged colleagues on both sides of Gray Street (the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness and the UofL School of Public Health and Information Sciences) in this new vision of collaboration. I am confident Kelly Pryor is going to take us to another level and stimulate initiatives that target health disparities in ways that will have a measurable impact. That is exciting.”
In addition to teaching at the School of Public Health and Information Sciences, Kelly Pryor will mentor students, serve on dissertation committees, and provide hands-on learning opportunities for students.
Kelly Pryor holds a PhD in recreation, park and tourism sciences with a concentration in youth development from Texas A&M University, a master’s degree in education administration and human development, with a concentration in educational policy studies, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in international affairs with concentrations in global public health and Africa, both from The George Washington University.
Kelly Pryor will be paid $120,000 annually. Louisville Metro Government and UofL will split her salary and benefits equally.
