Research

Current Projects

1. Fluoride varnish application in primary care settings (Joint work with Dr. Shillpa Naavaal - Virginia Commonwealth University School of Dentistry and Dr. Robert Keyser, KSU ISYE. Funded by NIH):  We are partnering with primary care physicians in Georgia to study the process of fluoride varnish (FV) application in the well-visit. We are working to assess barriers and facilitators to preventive oral health services delivery in primary care settings and to optimize FV application into the well-child visit workflow for different combinations of environmental factors. Through an NIH supplement to focus on populations that experience health disparities, we are also studying FV application specifically in Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) settings.

2. School-based sealant application for adolescents (Joint work with co-PI Dr. Shillpa Naavaal - Virginia Commonwealth University School of Dentistry and PhD student Mahdiyeh Soltaninejad. Funded by NIH.): We are currently investigating the state of second molar sealants and their impact on decay in US adolescents. We will then collect and analyze data on middle school sealant programs in the US to examine middle school SBSPs’ reach and evaluate differences and similarities between programs across states. Our goal is to build a simulation model and assess the impact of increased access to school-based sealant programs on adolescents’ oral health under various scenarios.

3. Effectiveness of school-based fluoride varnish programs:  (Joint work with CDC researchers for the Community Preventive Services Task Force): Systematic literature review and assessment of findings.

 

Selected Published Refereed Journal Articles/Book Chapters

Scherrer, C, Naavaal, S., Lin M., Griffin, S. (2022) COVID-19 Pandemic Impact on US Childhood Caries and Potential Mitigation. Journal of Dental Research, https://doi.org/10.1177/00220345221090183

Rittur, Scherrer, C. R., Vandenbussche, J., Whipple, J. (2021). A Study of Student Perceptions of Office Hours. Journal on Excellence in College Teaching, 32(4), 81-116

Scherrer, C. and J. Sharpe (2020). Service Learning Versus Traditional Project-Based Learning: A Comparison Study in a First Year Industrial and Systems Engineering Course. International Journal for Service Learning in Engineering, Humanitarian Engineering and Social Entrepreneurship.

Scherrer, C.R. and S. Naavaal. Cost-savings of fluoride varnish application in primary care for Medicaid-enrolled children in Virginia. (2019) Journal of Pediatrics.

Vandenbussche, J. R., Ritter, L. R., Scherrer, C. R. (2018). An incentivized early remediation program in Calculus 1. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology.

Griffin, S., M. Henderson, S. Naavaal, C. Scherrer. “Economic Evaluation of School-based Sealant Programs: A Community Guide Systematic Review”, American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2017.

Griffin, S., S. Naavaal, C. Scherrer, P. Griffin, S. Chattopadhyay. “School-Based Dental Sealant Programs Prevent Cavities and Are Cost-Effective”, Health Affairs, (Dec. 2016).

M. Maloni, S. Campbell, D. Gligor, C. Scherrer, E. Boyd. "Exploring the Effects of Workforce Level on Supply Chain Job Satisfaction and Industry Commitment" (Fall 2017) International Journal of Logistics Management Vol. 28 Issue: 4, pp.1294-1318

M. Maloni, C. Scherrer, J. Mascaritolo. “Attracting Students to the Field of Logistics, Part II”, Transportation Journal (Fall 2016)

M. Maloni, C. Scherrer, S. Campbell, E.Boyd. “Attracting Students to the Field of Logistics, Part 1”, Transportation Journal (Fall 2016)

Vandenbussche, J., W. Griffiths, and C. Scherrer. “Students’ Perceptions of Homework Policies in Lower- and Intermediate-Level Mathematics Courses”. Mathematics and Computer Education. (2014) Vol. 48, no. 2, 149-163.

 Griffin, P., H. Lee, C. Scherrer, and J. Swann. Balancing investments in federally qualified health centers and Medicaid for improved access and coverage in Pennsylvania”, Health Care Management Science. (January 2014)

Scherrer, C. “Outreach Emphasis on the Human Impact Potential of Engineering Improves Perceptions of Underrepresented Groups”, Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering. (2013) Vol 19(1), pp. 37-45.

Ghoniem, A., Scherrer, C. and Solak, S. “A Specialized Column Generation Approach for a Vehicle Routing Problem with Demand Allocation”. (April 2012) Journal of the Operational Research Society.

Solak, S., Ghoniem, A. and Scherrer, C.. “The Stop and Drop Problem: Applications of Vehicle Routing to the Food Bank Vehicle Routing. (February 2012). Annals of Operations Research.

Scherrer, C. R. “Comparison of an Introductory Level Undergraduate Statistics Course Taught with Traditional, Hybrid, and Online Delivery Methods”, INFORMS Transactions on Education. pp. 106–110. May 2011.

Scherrer, C., R. Butler, and S. Burns. “Perceptions of On-line Education”, ASEE Advances in Engineering Education. Vol. 2, No. 2. Summer 2010.

Scherrer, C. and P. Griffin. “Dynamic Pricing in Project-Oriented Production: A Comparison to Current Pricing Techniques”, Journal of Revenue Management and Pricing, Vol 8, No 4, pp373-387. August 2009.

Griffin, P., C. Scherrer, and J. Swann. “Optimization of Community Health Center Locations and Service Offerings with Statistical Need Estimation”, IIE Transactions, Vol. 40, No. 9, September 2008.

Scherrer, C., P. Griffin, and J. Swann. “Public Health Dental Sealant Programs: Optimal Delivery and the Cost of Practice Acts”, Medical Decision Making, Vol. 27, No. 6, December 2007.

Griffin, P. and C. Scherrer. “Next Generation Enterprise Systems”, in Handbook of Quantitative Supply Chain Analysis, edited by D. Simchi-Levi, S.D. Wu and Z.J. Shen, Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2004, Chapter 18.

Research Awards 

Finalist, Charles C. Shepard Science Award, CDC 2023

'Exceptional Contributions to Research' Award, KSU 2023 

Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology - Distinguished Scholarship Award 2020.

KSU 2017 Outstanding Research and Creative Activity Award – Engineering Applications.

Best paper award, ASEE Industrial Engineering Division 2016.

Finalist for 2006 Pierskalla Award sponsored by the Health Applications Section of INFORMS 

Research Funding Awarded  

“Reducing dental caries and oral health disparities among adolescents: The impact of increasing 2nd molar sealants through school-based sealant programs”. Sponsored by NIH, multi-PI: Christina Scherrer and Shillpa Naavaal (VCU). Sept. 2022 - Aug. 2024. ($408,000)

"Removing Barriers to Fluoride Varnish Application in Primary Care Settings: Supplement to Study Primary Care for Underserved Populations". Sponsored by NIH, PI: Christina Scherrer. Sept. 2022 - Aug. 2023. ($154,837)

"Removing Barriers to Fluoride Varnish Application in Primary Care Settings", Sponsored by NIH, PI: Christina Scherrer. Feb. 2022 - Jan. 2025. ($423,574)

"Systematic Review of Effectiveness and Cost-effectiveness of Delivering Fluoride Varnish to Schoolchildren", IPA Sponsored by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022. ($36,770)

“Optimization Models for Public Health Policy”.Broadening Participation Research Initiation Grants in Engineering (BRIGE) at NSF. PI: Christina Scherrer. August 2009. ($174,802)

“Domestic Violence Needs Assessment”.Proposal to the Georgia Department of Human Resources. PI: Angela Snyder, Georgia State Health Policy Center. January 2009. ($30,000)

“Using System Dynamics and Cost Effectiveness Modeling to Improve State Policies on Childhood Obesity”. PI: Karen Minyard, Georgia State Health Policy Center.  July 2010. ($10,000)

“Impact of performing high school outreach on college participants”. SPSU CTE SoTL mini-grant ($750) April 2012

“Develop mathematical models of the transmission dynamics of TB in healthcare settings and to assess the impact and costs of various Infection Control interventions and strategies”. Sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and administered by CRDF Global. PI: Christina Scherrer, Co-PI: Adeel Khalid. August 2012. ($30,000)

"An Introductory Study of the Factors Influencing Student Motivation". SPSU CTE SoTL mini-grant ($750) April 2013. Co-PIs: Leigh Sharma and Christina Scherrer.

“Domestic Violence Needs Assessment”.  ($7,000) August 2013. Sub-contract to the Georgia Health Policy Center contract with the Governor’s Office of Children and Families.

"Implementation Intentions" SPSU CTE SoTL mini-grant ($750) April 2013. Co-PIs: Leigh Sharma and Jennifer Vandenbussche.

“Aging in Cobb County: Assessing the Complex and Changing Needs of Older Adults”, CETL Creative Activities and Research Experiences for Teams (CARET) award ($5,000), 2016. With PI: Evelina Sterling.