Marcela Nava, PhD MPP MSSW

I am a health equity researcher who studies the political economy of health and public policy to look for “what works” in reducing health inequities and protecting community health. I am a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Research Scholar and Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Arlington. I hold a PhD in Public Policy and Political Economy and a Master of Public Policy from The University of Texas at Dallas, a Master of Science in Social Work from The University of Texas at Arlington, and a Bachelor of Science in Social Work from Texas Christian University.

As an activist scholar, I also draw heavily on my experiences as a mestiza, child of immigrants, and community-based social work practitioner. Broadly, my research explores the ways that institutions influence health in order to support multi-level, innovative, and common sense solutions. I leverage innovative and mixed-methods approaches to study the political, economic, and social contexts of immigrants and other marginalized groups in the US. As an educator and mentor, I teach graduate and undergraduate courses on health insurance and access to care, immigration and health policy, and social work research methods.