Dr. Silk is an associate professor in the Department of Communication and the Director of the MA Program in Health Communication at Michigan State University; she also has an appointment with the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES). She researches in the general area of health communication, with a specific interest in developing effective health messages for the lay public that are sensitive to health literacy issues. Dr. Silk is currently a co- investigator for an NCI and NIEHS funded grant that investigates the links between the environment and breast cancer. With an emphasis on adolescent lifestyle factors [nutrition and exercise] as a strategy for risk reduction, Dr. Silk is developing health messages for mothers of adolescent girls. Dr. Silk is also funded through MAES to investigate public perceptions of bioeconomy initiatives.