RTI’s Dr. Courtney Bonner elected to Society of Behavioral Medicine’s Board of Directors

Dr. Bonner’s professional experiences include conducting community-based participatory research to improve health equity among underserved populations

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. — Courtney Bonner, Ph.D., a senior research psychologist at RTI International, was recently elected as a member delegate to the Board of Directors for the Society of Behavioral Medicine (SBM), the nation's leading group of multi-specialty professionals dedicated to improving health and quality of life through proven behavioral science.

SBM is a nonprofit organization made up of researchers, clinicians, educators, industry professionals and policymakers from over 20 health care disciplines. With a focus on behavioral, psychosocial, environmental, and biomedical factors, SBM members conduct research on various health conditions.

“I’m honored to join this group of distinguished colleagues who are dedicated to working together to improve health outcomes for all people through research, evidence-based practices, and action,” said Dr. Bonner. “I look forward to bringing my years of experience as a behavioral health researcher to ensure SBM continues to deliver on its mission.

Dr. Bonner’s professional experiences include conducting community-based participatory research to improve health equity among underserved populations.

In her role at RTI, she leads research that develops clinic-, provider-, and patient-level tools to address barriers to HIV prevention and care. She currently leads research funded by the National Institutes of Health and the private sector to increase awareness of and access to preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention among Black women. She also serves as a co-investigator on several other NIH-funded trials evaluating the impact of interventions to improve HIV prevention and care, domestically and globally.

Dr. Bonner earned her bachelor’s degree from Florida A&M University, her Ph.D. from the University of Memphis and completed her postdoctoral research at Yale University’s Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS.