On This Episode Of The Public Health Epidemiology Conversations (PHEC) Podcast
Our guest is one of the many people who are impacting public health in an unconventional way. Princess Jennings is the founder of Community Tracking Services, a data collection company focused on building relationships and trust among the communities it serves. She joins us to tell us about her life, how she got introduced to public health, her passion for the mental health and substance abuse population, what her company does, and so much more! We delve into how her ‘Data Bounty Hunters’ build trust in their communities, the services they provide, and how her knowledge of epidemiology and public health helps her serve her clients. Finally, she shares some words of wisdom for aspiring data collectors looking to make a difference. To hear all this and find out how Princess is connected to our last guest, Dr. Joyee Washington, tune in now!
Meet Princess Jennings
Princess Jennings is a Birmingham transplant by way of Meridian, MS. From a young age she has always strived for excellence and exemplified service to her community. After obtaining her associate degree from Meridian Community College in 2006, Jennings went on to lay roots in Birmingham, AL. While there, she obtained her Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice with a minor in Sociology from The University of Alabama at Birmingham. She has called Birmingham home for more than 17 years.
As the owner and Data Management Specialist of Community Tracking Services, Princess has upheld her mission to provide academic and research institutions with the required qualitative data services for their organizations. Princess has been able to build a strong team to meet the needs of the southeastern region. As the CEO she has had the opportunity to work directly with prominent organizations, including UAB’s School of Medicine, Psychiatry and Substance Abuse Division. She has also taken the initiative of gaining experience with the Government Performance Result ACT (GPRA) which encourages agencies to produce strategic and performance plans, as well as conduct gap analyses for projects to be compliant.
At the peak of the pandemic, Princess was recognized in the Birmingham Business Journal's Top 40 under 40 as well as being named Birmingham Business Journal’s Top CEO of 2020. She has worked with Peace and Paws Dog Rescue, an in-home fostering organization that lead her to rescue her dogs, Spirit, Laila, and Pancake. In her leisure time she enjoys spending time with them and traveling.
Listen To This Episode Of The Public Health Epidemiology Conversations (PHEC) Podcast
Conversation Highlights
Welcoming our guest and data collection expert, Princess Jennings
How Princess and my last guest, Joyee Washington, are connected
An overview of today’s guest’s incredible life and career
How Princess got into research work and realized that a desk job isn’t for her
The advantage of subcontracting and how Princess started her business
When she realized that her work falls under the umbrella of public health
Why Princess is particularly passionate about mental health and substance abuse
About her business, Community Tracking Services, and what they do
The importance of having a diverse team to build trust in Princess’ line of work
The kinds of communities they collect data from and the challenges they face
Where the name ‘The Data Bounty Hunters’ came from
About the kinds of clients they are serving and the services they provide
How Princess sees public health and how that has helped her serve her community
How her work impacts epidemiology
Some advice for anyone interested in getting into her line of work
“There’s nothing like ‘in-the-field’ data collection.” — Princess Jennings
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DrCHHuntley LLC is a public health consulting firm that specializes in epidemiology consulting, supporting large nonprofit organizations in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, and Florida that serve Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). We also provide nationwide public health consulting and epidemiology consulting support to BIPOC organizations across the United States.