Sara Geierstanger

Academic Program Management Officer
Institute for Health Policy Studies

Sara Geierstanger, MPH, Evaluation Director, has worked with the Institute for Health Policy Studies at UCSF since 1994. Sara’s evaluation work focuses on the potential of school health services to improve student physical and mental health and well-being to help them succeed in school and life. Her expertise is in multi-site evaluations, using a mixed methods approach of both qualitative and quantitative methods. Her current projects include a comprehensive evaluation of school health centers in Alameda County, as well as multiple evaluations of school-based behavioral health interventions throughout California. Sara received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and French from the University of Michigan and a Master of Public Health from the University of California, Berkeley. She also served as a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer in West Africa, and a U.S. Fulbright Research Scholar in Norway. In all of her work, Sara emphasizes the importance of listening to the needs of the populations being served, minimizing data burden on school communities, while collecting the most vital information possible to help improve the lives of vulnerable populations.

Publications: 

Case Management for Social Needs of Youth and Families in School-Based Health Centers.

The Journal of school health

Keeton VF, Soleimanpour S, Geierstanger S, Schapiro NA

Developing National Standardized Performance Measures for School-Based Health Centers: The National Quality Initiative.

The Journal of school health

Soleimanpour S, Geierstanger S, Goddard A, Cushing K, Fields P, Love H

Risk and Resilience Factors Associated With Frequency of School-Based Health Center Use.

The Journal of school health

Soleimanpour S, Geierstanger S, Lucas R, Ng S, Ferrey I

Mental Health Service Provision at School-Based Health Centers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Qualitative Findings From a National Listening Session.

Journal of pediatric health care : official publication of National Association of Pediatric Nurse Associates & Practitioners

Sullivan E, Geierstanger S, Soleimanpour S

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Resilience: Addressing the Unique Needs of Adolescents.

Academic pediatrics

Soleimanpour S, Geierstanger S, Brindis CD

School absences due to health conditions: Interventions

Encyclopedia of School Health.

Geierstanger S, Soleimanpour S

Chapter 2 The Role of School Health Centers in Health Care Access and Client Outcomes.

School-Based Health Care: Advancing Educational Success and Public Health

Samira Soleimanpour, Sara P. Geierstanger, Shelly Kaller, Virginia McCarter, Claire D. Brindis

Expanding Organizational Advocacy Capacity: Reflections From the Field.

The Foundation Review

Annette Gardner, Sara Geierstanger, Lori Miller Nascimento, Claire Brindis

Mental health characteristics and health-seeking behaviors of adolescent school-based health center users and nonusers.

The Journal of school health

Amaral G, Geierstanger S, Soleimanpour S, Brindis C

The role of school health centers in health care access and client outcomes.

American journal of public health

Soleimanpour S, Geierstanger SP, Kaller S, McCarter V, Brindis CD

Clinic consortia media advocacy capacity: partnering with the media and increasing policymaker awareness.

Journal of health communication

Gardner A, Geierstanger S, Brindis C, McConnel C

The role of policy advocacy in assuring comprehensive family life education in California.

Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education

Brindis CD, Geierstanger SP, Faxio A

Incorporating youth-led community participatory research into school health center programs and policies.

Public health reports (Washington, D.C. : 1974)

Soleimanpour S, Brindis C, Geierstanger S, Kandawalla S, Kurlaender T

Evaluation of a peer provider reproductive health service model for adolescents.

Perspectives on sexual and reproductive health

Brindis CD, Geierstanger SP, Wilcox N, McCarter V, Hubbard A

School-based health centers and academic performance: research, challenges, and recommendations.

The Journal of school health

Geierstanger SP, Amaral G, Mansour M, Walters SR