Toni Rudisill, PhD, MS

Dr. Toni Marie Rudisill is an epidemiologist who is immensely passionate about injury research.  Her research is focused primarily on transportation-related injuries and emergency care, substance use, and health policy often in rural and medically underserved populations.  Her research focuses on the intersection between medical conditions, prescription, and non-prescription drug use, driving performance, and motor vehicle collision risk.  She is also particularly interested in how public policies influence injuries and deaths in populations (e.g. passage of marijuana use laws, distracted driving laws, etc.).  Her research program is diverse as she conducts both experimental and observational studies along with mixed methods research. She collaborates often with healthcare providers at WVU Medicine.  She is the Principal Investigator of the Driving Simulation Laboratory located at the WVU Health Sciences Center.  She has also conducted numerous, statewide program evaluations. Her work has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, West Virginia Clinical and Translational Science Institute, American Thoracic Society, and the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources. Her work has been presented nationally and published in >40 well-respected, peer-reviewed journals.

In addition to her research, Dr. Rudisill is a passionate educator.  She teaches several graduate-level courses and one undergraduate course in the School of Public Health.  She is also currently the Department’s PhD Program Advisor.  She currently mentors numerous graduate and undergraduate students and is excited to see them gain new methodological and statistical skills and develop as researchers. 

Outside of work, Dr. Rudisill spends her time recreating in the great outdoors with her spouse and pets and can often be found hiking/backpacking trails, boating, fly fishing, golfing, horseback riding, and enjoying winter sports in the beautiful Appalachian mountains.

Education

• Doctor of Philosophy, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV
• Master of Science, West Chester University
• Bachelor of Science, Pennsylvania State University

Awards

Research Scholar, West Virginia Clinical and Translational Science Institute, Morgantown, WV; 2020

Invited Speaker, topic: challenges enforcing distracted driving laws; KJZZ NPR affiliate station, Phoenix, Arizona; 2019

Invited Lecturer, topic: drugged driving; American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety and Transportation Research Board Workshop, Washington, DC; 2018