Samantha Francois, PhD

Samantha Francois is a developmental scientist with expertise in adolescent development, structural violence, and anti-racist research. As an interdisciplinary, community-engaged scholar, Francois uses systems perspectives and critical race theory to understand the intersections of individual, community, and structural factors that impact development in Black adolescents and emerging adults. She also conducts intervention research on youth-led organizing and activism as violence prevention strategies. Francois uses community-based, participatory, and action research frameworks to conduct mixed-methods research studies with marginalized and oppressed communities with the goals of health equity, social transformation, and community liberation. Dr. Francois was recently co-executive director of Tulane University’s Violence Prevention Institute and co-director of the Center for Youth Equity, a CDC Center of Excellence in Youth Violence Prevention. Francois has a doctorate in psychological sciences from Tulane University.