How public policy shapes who can get care
Explore research & partnerships · Invite me to speak or lead a workshop · Explore teaching & mentorship · CV (PDF) Contact
Assistant Professor of Public Administration, Tarleton State University · Fort Worth, Texas
I study how public policy and the organizations that implement it shape health equity and access to care and social services. My research examines how institutional decisions affect who can get care and what those decisions mean for health outcomes. I work with public agencies, nonprofits, and community partners to understand where policies and services fall short and what institutions can change.
Research & partnerships
I study how public policies and the decisions organizations make when they put those policies into practice affect who gets health care and social services, and what that means for people’s health. I work with community partners to identify barriers and figure out what can change.
I welcome collaborations to evaluate a policy or program, design a study with community partners, or develop a joint grant proposal.
Explore my research and ways to collaborate
Speaking & workshops
I give talks on how policy shapes access to care and services, and lead workshops on community-engaged research and faculty development, including assignment design, AI use, and community-engaged learning.
Explore speaking topics and workshop details · Invite me to speak
Teaching & mentorship
I teach public administration and social work and mentor students as they navigate academia, build professional confidence, and develop applied research.
About
My background in social work informs how I study public administration. I pay particular attention to what happens when people try to use services and how frontline organizations put policy into practice.
I also serve as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at The University of Texas at Arlington and am an alumna of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Research Scholars program. I earned my PhD in Public Policy and Political Economy and my MPP at The University of Texas at Dallas, my MSSW at The University of Texas at Arlington, and my BSSW at Texas Christian University.
I’m a first-generation college graduate, and I worked while going to school and raising a family. Those experiences shape how I mentor students who are figuring out academia’s unwritten rules while balancing responsibilities outside school.
Outside the university, I train in CrossFit and teach group fitness classes for people in recovery through SoberFit. Teaching those classes has made me curious about how movement and social connection can support recovery and mental health.
Contact
For speaking invitations, workshops, mentorship inquiries, and research or funding collaborations, email marcela.nava.phd@gmail.com.
