August 13, 2024
Candace A. Robledo, PhD, MPH
Dr. Robledo is a Scholar Alumni of the Rio Grande Valley Alzheimer’s Disease Resource Center for Minority Aging Research (RGV AD-RCMAR) and the South Texas Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC). She is an epidemiologist with collaborative research and consultation experience in reproductive and perinatal epidemiology, environmental epidemiology, and health disparities research. Her primary research interests have focused on assessing the impact that environmental chemicals (i.e. bisphenol-A, phthalates, persistent organic pollutants and air pollution) have on maternal and child health. She is the principal investigator of the UTRGV Maternal Health Research Center, a center focused on building capacity to conduct research to address health disparities in maternal health outcomes and help design and inform community-based solutions to address these disparities.
November 3, 2020
Bruce V. Lewenstein, Ph.D.
Dr. Bruce V. Lewenstein is a Professor of Science Communication and Chair of the Department of Science and Technology Studies at Cornell University. He was trained as a historian of science and is a widely known authority on public communication of science and technology, including informal science education, citizen science, and communication training for scientists. He has edited and co-edited special journal sections on citizen science and on feminist approaches to science communication and has been an active evaluator of informal science education programs, especially in citizen science. He also served on the U.S. National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine committee that produced Learning through Citizen Science: Enhancing Opportunities by Design (2019). Dr. Lewenstein earned his Bachelor of Arts in Humanities from University of Chicago and his master’s degree and PhD in History and Sociology of Science from University of Pennsylvania.
September 22, 2020
Robert Espinoza, M.P.A.
Mr. Robert Espinoza is currently the Vice President of Policy of PHI, a non-profit that works to improve the quality of the job done by direct-care workers who provide services to the elderly and individuals with disabilities whether in people's homes or in nursing homes and other institutional facilities. He is responsible for leading PHI’s national strategies for advocacy, research, policy analysis, and public education, working at the intersection of workforce development, eldercare, and disability services. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Journalism and his Bachelor of Arts in English both from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He received his Master of Public Administration from New York University.
June 16, 2020
Silvia H. Barcellos, Ph.D.
Dr. Silvia Barcelllos is an Assistant Professor of Economics of the Center for Economic and Social Research at the University of Southern California. She earned a B.A. and M.A. in Economics at the Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. Later, she also earned an M.A. and a Ph.D. in Economics at Princeton University. Her research interests include span labor economics, development, economics, and health economics.
June 9, 2020
Neela K. Patel, M.D.
Dr. Neela Patel is an Associate Professor and Chief of the Division of Geriatrics & Palliative Care in the Dept. of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio. Dr. Patel earned her medical degree from the Kempegowda Institute of Medical Sciences and her residency at St. John's National Academy of Health Sciences in Bangalore, India. Later, she completed a residency and fellowship at the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio. Dr. Patel developed a model of integrated care for older adults across all clinical settings called the CARINO Approach that is linked to community resources. She has served communities in South Texas, as she helped develop and implement closely integrated, seamless care patterns across clinicians, ranging from screening in primary care offices, personalized preventive advice, diagnosis, and development of integrated care plans. In collaboration with Biggs Institute, she supports community care providers and family caregivers, as behavioral, medical, and neurological issues arise, to manage and severe dementia.
