Rate My Professor Tyra Gross

Dr. Tyra Toston Gross, PhD, MPH, is an Associate Professor of Public Health and Head of the Department of Public Health Sciences at Xavier University of Louisiana, where she has served as a public health instructor, researcher, and mentor since August 2015. She earned her MPH in Behavioral and Community Health from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in 2009, studied Nutrition at Louisiana State University, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in reproductive women’s health at the University of Texas Medical Branch. A native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Dr. Gross is a member of the American Public Health Association and the Society of Behavioral Medicine. She is also a certified Personal and Executive Coach with the Capp Institute.

Dr. Gross's research focuses on maternal and child health disparities, including the health of reproductive-age women, Black postpartum women in Louisiana, and smoking cessation needs for low-income pregnant women. Her work addresses infant and young child feeding in emergencies amid hurricanes and climate change impacts on vulnerable families, emphasizing community preparedness and partnerships. In 2024, she launched the MA CHERE Lab, the Maternal and Child Health Equity Research and Engagement Lab, at Xavier University of Louisiana, funded in part by a fellowship from the UNC National MCH National Workforce Development Center. She received the LA CaTS Center Community Scholar Award in 2021, which supported community-engaged research. Her key publications include “A Vulnerable Time To Be a Young Family in an Emergency”: Qualitative Findings From an Exploration of an Emergency Perinatal and Infant Feeding Hotline in Louisiana (Journal of Human Lactation, 2024); Pastors' Perceptions on the Health Status of the Black Church and African-American Communities (Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 2018); Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Motivators and Barriers Among Community College Students: Considerations for Development of a Successful Vaccination Program (Vaccine, 2018); Long-Term Breastfeeding in African American Mothers (Journal of Human Lactation, 2017); and Developing Health Education Skills in Undergraduate Public Health Students (Frontiers in Public Health, 2017). These contributions advance understanding of health disparities and support interventions for minority health.