Victoria A. Frye

Sen. Victoria Frye is a tenured Professor at the Columbia School of Social Work and a prevention scientist, cross-trained in the social sciences and epidemiological theory and methods. Her scholarship seeks to reduce inequity through research and intervention on HIV and interpersonal violence. Frye develops and tests conceptual models of risk and resilience, specifying interconnected macro-, meso- and micro-level theoretical pathways, using observational data and complex statistical models. In partnership with organizations and people affected by HIV and violence, she uses these and additional formative research results to design and test prevention interventions. She has been the PI of numerous NIH/CDC-funded grants, most anti-violence, -stigma and -discrimination studies. For example, in CHHANGE/CHHARGE, she developed and tested, using quasi-experimental study designs, community-level, anti-intersectional stigma and discrimination (e.g., homophobia, racism, and HIV stigma) interventions. She is currently leading Pleasure, Positive, Practices an RCT testing a multilevel, multi-component, sex-positive intervention to increase HIV testing and PEP/PrEP uptake among Black cisgender men and transgender women. She also conducts research in Kazakhstan with women who exchange sex for resources. Frye is an Associate Editor at Stigma & Health. She has lived in Washington Heights, where her two children attended public schools, for over 25 years.