Academic Advisory Committee

Margarita Alegria, PhD

Margarita Alegría is the Chief of the Disparities Research Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital, and a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Her research focuses on disparities in mental health and substance abuse services, with the goal of improving access, equity, and quality of these services for disadvantaged and ethnic/racial minority populations.

Claire Brindis, DrPH

Claire Brindis is a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at UCSF and holds leadership positions in multiple research institutions, including the Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies. She conducts research focused on child, adolescent and women's health policy, as well as on the implementation of health care reform and immigration health.

Katherine A. Flores, MD

Katherine A. Flores is the director of UCSF-Fresno's Latino Center for Medical Education and Research Center, which is intended to address the serious shortage of Latino physicians and other health care professionals in the area by guiding individuals to become health care professionals who ultimately return to the San Joaquin Valley and provide culturally competent health care services to the medically underserved. Flores is a family physician with a statewide reputation for leadership in education of Latino health professionals.

Shannon Gleeson, PhD

Shannon Gleeson is Associate Professor of Labor Relations, Law & History at the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations. She is engaged in various collaborative projects that examine the implementation of immigrant worker rights.

Marjorie Kagawa-Singer, PhD

Marjorie Kagawa-Singer is Research Professor/Professor Emerita in the Department of Community Health Sciences and the Department of Asian American Studies at UCLA. Her clinical work and research have been in oncology, focusing upon the disparities in physical and mental health care outcomes of ethnic minority populations with cancer -- primarily with the Asian-American and Pacific Islander communities.

Ninez Ponce, MPP, PhD

Ninez Ponce is Professor of Health Policy and Management at UCLA and the Director of UCLA's Center for Health Policy Research. She is the principal investigator of the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), the largest state health survey in the United States. Her research contributes to the elimination of racial/ethnic and social disparities in health and health care.

Karthick Ramakrishnan, PhD

Karthick Ramakrishnan is associate dean of the UC Riverside School of Public Policy, and professor of public policy and political science. He is founder and director of the Center for Social Innovation at UCR, and his research focuses on civic participation, immigration policy, and the politics of race, ethnicity, and immigration in the United States.

Scott D. Rhodes, PhD

Scott D. Rhodes is Professor of Social Sciences & Health Policy at Wake Forest School of Medicine. His research focuses on sexual health; HIV and sexually transmitted diseases; and health disparities, including substance use and obesity, among vulnerable communities.

David Takeuchi, PhD

David Takeuchi is Professor, Associate Dean for Research, the Dorothy Book Scholar, and Co-Founding Director of the Research and Innovations in Social, Economic, and Environmental Equity (RISE) at Boston College. His research focuses on the social, structural, and cultural contexts that are associated with different health outcomes, especially among racial and ethnic minorities. He also examines the use of health services in different communities.

Abel Valenzuela, PhD

Abel Valenzuela is Professor of Chicano Studies and Urban Planning and Director of UCLA’s Institute for Research on Labor and Employment. His research on day lab\or and immigrant labor markets have helped frame national public and policy narratives on immigrant and low-wage workers.