By Katy Popovitch

Ginger Yang has joined SSI as a new faculty affiliate. Yang is a professor of pediatrics and epidemiology at Ohio State and a principal investigator at Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s Center for Injury Research and Policy.

Yang said some reasons she is excited to join SSI include the potential research collaborations, mentoring students and joining a kind community of people.

“It is a group of people I can relate to in terms of research, either the prevention of an injury or the engagement of sports participation,” Yang said. “I feel like I can contribute because no one else is in public health.”

Yang said she played competitive volleyball in China and almost became a professional player, but she was unable to due to her height.

“I was not able to become professional, but I was able to link my research to my interests,” Yang said. “My experience as an athlete has been very helpful.”

Yang earned her Masters in Public Health at Indiana University Bloomington and her PhD in Health Behavior and Health Education at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Yang’s research focus is on child injury prevention. She was a Major League Baseball Injury Research Committee member from 2010-2015.

“My job can help with safe participation so they can still enjoy the sports and reduce the injury risk,” Yang said. “That can make a difference in people's lives.”

Yang said she is looking forward to networking with professors and students through SSI.

“I am really looking forward to a lot of new ideas, new research and the new people that I will work with,” Yang said.