Rise, Respond and Rebuild: Healing Communities by Ending Gun Violence
Sept. 11-12, 2026 | Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Thank you for joining us for the 2026 Rise, Respond and Rebuild: Healing Communities by Ending Gun Violence conference. We are grateful to the more than 115 attendees, speakers, panelists, sponsors and community partners who contributed to two days of meaningful dialogue, learning and collaboration. Your participation helped advance important conversations about prevention, healing and community resilience.
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The September 2026 conference brought together participants for conversations, curriculum, and programming centered on a public health approach to reducing firearm injuries and fatalities.
Gun violence continues to affect individuals, families, and communities across the nation, leaving lasting impacts on physical, emotional, and social well‑being. As a medical and biomedical institution, the Jacobs School is committed to leading with science, compassion, and public‑health principles to drive meaningful change.
Our Goals
- Facilitate meaningful dialogue on how firearm violence intersects with medical education, professional training, public health practice, and community safety.
- Share practical resources and tools—including programs, curricula, and strategies—that support others in teaching, practicing, and advocating for firearm violence prevention.
- Build new perspectives by fostering connection among diverse professionals, educators, community members, and leaders working to end gun violence.
- Strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration to accelerate community‑centered responses and prevention strategies.
Adrienne Garr, executive director of Buffalo's Office of Gun Violence Prevention, and Eddie Payne, community coordinator with the Erie County Department of Central Police Services, joined Allison Brashear, MD, MBA on UB Medicine Podcast to discuss how Buffalo is working to prevent violence, support healing and strengthen community partnerships.
Contact Information
For more information, please contact Annie Printup (anniepri@buffalo.edu).
Friday, Sept. 11, 2026
1–1:30 p.m.
Registration & Welcome Reception
1:45–2 p.m.
Opening Remarks
2:15–3:15 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions:
- Community Resiliency After Gun Violence
Melissa Archer, MSN, PMHNP-BC, and Fred D. Archer, MD, will explore the impact of gun violence on individuals and neighborhoods, highlighting approaches to healing and community recovery following the Tops mass shooting. - Are Mass Shooters a Social Kind?
Kurt Blankschaen, PhD, will examine how terms such as mass shooter shape public understanding of gun violence and influence prevention efforts. - Stop the Bleed: Survivability, Engagement and Magical Thinking
Tracy Nerney, RN, BS, MPA, will discuss how Stop the Bleed programs combine lifesaving emergency-response training with community engagement and violence prevention.
3:15–3:30 p.m.
Break
3:30–4:30 p.m.
Panel Discussion:
Law Enforcement and Community Relations
Facilitators Eddie Payne and Adrienne Garr, LMSW, will lead a discussion on trust, communication and collaboration.
4:45–5:15 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions:
- Femicide as a Gun Violence and Public Health Crisis
Kimberly Slew-Ngarambe will examine the intersection of intimate partner violence, firearm access and gender-based violence through a public health lens. - Street Engagement Team: Violence Interruption in Buffalo
Pastor James E. Giles will discuss how Buffalo's community-based violence interruption program builds trust, prevents violence and strengthens neighborhood safety. - Teaching Medical Students How to Support Trauma Patients
Mike Lamb, PhD, and Willie Griffin, a second-year master of social work student at the University at Buffalo, will explore how trauma-informed training prepares future physicians to better understand and support patients beyond the hospital setting.
5:30–7 p.m.
Keynote Speaker and Dinner Reception:
- From Nonfatal to Fatal: Tracing the Community Firearm Violence Pipeline in Baltimore and Its Public Health Implications
- Brian Wade, PhD, will examine the pathways that connect nonfatal and fatal firearm violence, drawing on community-based research in Baltimore to explore the broader public health implications of violence exposure and opportunities for prevention.
- Hosted by Heather M. Gardiner, PhD, MPH, this conversation will further explore firearm violence as a public health crisis and highlight strategies for prevention, intervention and community healing.
Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026
8:30–9 a.m.
Check In / Grab-and-Go Breakfast
9–9:45 a.m.
Welcome and Poetry Performance
10–10:30 a.m.
Concurrent Sessions:
- Compassion Fatigue: Identifying Risk and Promoting Resilience in Health Care Workers
Chandra Grabill, PhD, will explore compassion fatigue, burnout and secondary traumatic stress, with practical strategies to build resilience and support well-being. - Means Reduction Through Erie County Suicide Prevention Coalition Initiatives
Members of the Erie County Suicide Prevention Coalition, including Elena Miller, LMSW, will discuss how means reduction efforts are advancing suicide prevention across the community. - Showcasing the Firearm Injury and Mortality Prevention (FIMP) Pilot Program
Representatives from SAFE (Scrubs Addressing Firearms), UB Chapter, will highlight how the FIMP pilot program is expanding across Western New York to connect patients at risk for firearm violence with safety resources.- Co-presented by Robin Matyjasik, CEN
10:45 p.m.–12:30 p.m.
Keynote Speaker and Lunch Reception:
- Ethical and Equitable Considerations: The Use of AI and Digital Storytelling in Gun Violence Research
Joseph Richardson, PhD, will discuss how emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence and digital storytelling, are shaping gun violence research and prevention efforts, with a focus on ethics, equity and community engagement.- Location: Active Learning Center
12:30–1:15 p.m.
Activities: Visions of Hope and CPR training
1:15–2:15 p.m.
Panel Discussion:
- Imagining a Childhood Without Firearm Violence
Patricia Logan-Greene, PhD, MSSW, will lead an interactive discussion exploring the impact of firearm violence on children, families and communities, while encouraging participants to envision prevention-focused approaches that promote safety, healing and healthier childhood experiences.
2:30–3:30 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions:
- There's Light on Our Faces, Now
Join Jillian Hanesworth for an interactive poetry workshop exploring community violence, healing and the power of storytelling. - From Trauma to Healing: Survivor-Led Solutions for Safer Communities
Aswad Thomas will share how survivor-led initiatives can transform trauma into healing, strengthen communities and help prevent violence. - Renew, Restore, Resilient: A Guided Wellness Session
This restorative wellness session offers conference participants an opportunity to pause, reflect and recharge through gentle chair yoga and a trauma-informed sound bath meditation led by Brenda Zechmeister and Vera V. Chapman, PhD.
3:45–4:30 p.m.
Community Conversation
- Location: Active Learning Center
- Hosted by the Erie County Restorative Justice Coalition
Thank You to Our Sponsors
Our executive committee is composed of community leaders, advocates and partners who believe that gun violence is preventable and that change begins with action. Each member brings a personal commitment to protecting lives and strengthening communities, and their collective voice helps shape our mission, priorities and path forward.
- Zeneta Everhart, Masten District Councilwoman, City of Buffalo
- Heather Gardiner, Director of the Community Health Equity Research Institute, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- Adrienne Garr, Director of the Office of Gun Violence Prevention, City of Buffalo
- Selina Irizarry, Masten District Chief of Staff, City of Buffalo
- Patricia Logan-Greene, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, UB School of Social Work
- David Milling, Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- Eddie Payne, Coordinator of the Erie County Gun Violence Prevention Taskforce
- Rev. Kinzer Pointer, President of Greater Buffalo United Ministries
- Julie Szrama, Director of Student and Academic Affairs, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- Brian Wade, Senior Data Scientist at The University of Pennsylvania
- Kamilah Weems, Director of Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships in Medical Education at AAMC
- Garnell Whitfield, Social Justice Advocate
- Annie Printup, Office of Accreditation and Quality Improvement, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- Dawn Cwierley, Office of the Vice President for Health Sciences and Dean, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
- Linda Christiano, Office of the Vice President for Health Sciences and Dean, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
The Evolution of Our Work
Rise, Respond and Rebuild builds on the Jacobs School’s ongoing commitment to addressing gun violence as a public‑health crisis. This conference evolved from earlier conferences focused on prevention, education, and community partnership, expanding that work into a broader, more inclusive forum for shared learning and action. Today, the event brings together diverse voices to strengthen our collective ability to promote healing, safety, and well‑being across all communities.