Yolanda Suarez-Balcazar

Dr. Suarez-Balcazar is a Professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy, Affiliate Faculty in the Department of Disability and Human Development, and Department of Psychology at the University of Illinois Chicago. Her research expands across several interrelated areas of race, culture, disability, and health that concentrate on understanding and addressing health disparities among immigrant populations with disabilities and their families. Embracing a community-based participatory approach to research, her work has also focused on designing culturally relevant health interventions and promoting cultural humility, diversity, equity, and inclusion. In 2021, Dr. Suarez-Balcazar was the recipient of the Distinguished Alumna Award from the University of Kansas, Department of Applied Behavioral Science and in 2022 she was named UIC University Scholar. She is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, a member of the Immigrant Justice Interest Group of the Society for Community Research and Action (SCRA), and former president of SCRA.