Blaine Parrish is a Senior Research Scientist in the GWU Department of Health Policy. His HIV work over the last 15 years includes academic research, client services, project planning, administration, coordination, management, and evaluation. He has worked on the local, State, and Federal levels.

Mr. Parrish served as executive director of AIDS Resources of Rural Texas (ARRT) for seven years, project officer in the HAB Program Development Branch, and as a project director for GWU’s Forum for Collaborative HIV Research before coming to the Department of Health Policy. During his tenure as executive director of ARRT, he developed prevention and HIV counseling/testing programs for at-risk youth. The programs were designed to provide local community colleges and universities an opportunity to partner with ARRT to bring these services to their campus medical clinics. Prevention-to-care programs were then developed by Mr. Parrish as individuals were identified for services. As the organization grew, Mr. Parrish designed youth support groups, activities, and outreach programs specifically designed for hard-to-reach rural youth, especially Hispanic and African-American adolescents.

Mr. Parrish served as ARRT CEO and CFO, overseeing the $2.2 million annual budget. Funding was received from the RWCA Act Titles I, II and III, HOPWA, and CDC. Mr. Parrish developed the financial accounting system as well as development of all budgets, tracking systems for service delivery, and evaluation tools to monitor staff and services. Mr. Parrish completed his work at ARRT by opening a Title III medical clinic to provide care to under-served rural and minority individuals living over 37 counties and 54,000 square miles. During Mr. Parrish’s service with HAB, he provided support to grantees preparing to begin primary medical services to rural and underserved populations, including 60 organizations funded through the MAI.

Mr. Parrish has extensive project management experience having directed several projects for the Forum for Collaborative HIV Research, including the CDC/OAR-funded “Sex and Gender in HIV” project and the HRSA/CDC-funded “Quality of HIV Care” project. Mr. Parrish is co-author of “Quality of HIV Care – Closing the Gap,” a report on the status of HIV primary care in the US, including for hard-to-reach and underserved communities. He currently manages projects for the Department of Health Policy including the CDC-funded “HIV Screening/Testing in ER Departments,” and the HRSA-funded “Substance Abuse/Mental Health Services Integration into HIV Primary Care.”

Mr. Parrish holds an MA in Humanities from the University of Texas at Arlington, an undergraduate degree in Education from the University of Central Oklahoma, and is enrolled in a doctoral program in the Capella University School of Business.