Biography
Elizabeth L. Dickson, PhD, MSN, RN is a public health nurse, researcher, educator, and policy scholar with more than 25 years of experience advancing health equity through public health practice, community engagement, policy, and systems change. She is an Associate Professor (with tenure) in the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, College of Population Health, Senior Faculty at the Center for Participatory Research, and Chair of the Masters of Public Health (MPH) Clinician Track.
Dr. Dickson's scholarship focuses on strengthening partnerships among communities, schools, healthcare systems, public institutions, and academic organizations to improve population health. Her expertise includes community-engaged research, health policy, public health systems, adolescent and school health, youth partnership, and community-based participatory research (CBPR).
Her research examines how health and education policies are developed, implemented, and translated into practice, with particular attention to community context and organizational factors that influence successful implementation and sustainable outcomes. Dr. Dickson’s expertise in policy implementation, legislative advocacy, evidence development, and stakeholder engagement has informed state policy and legislative initiatives related to school health, adolescent health, and public health systems.
Dr. Dickson serves as Principal Investigator and Co-Investigator on over $1M federally-funded, state-funded, and foundation-supported projects. She has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications, policy reports, and book chapters and is co-editor of the 8th and forthcoming 9th editions of Policy & Politics in Nursing and Health Care. Dr. Dickson’s teaching spans undergraduate, master's, and doctoral programs in public health and nursing and she has taught in both in-person and online, receiving national and university recognition for excellence in teaching. She actively mentors master's and doctoral students in public health and nursing, serving as chair, committee member, and faculty mentor for thesis and dissertation projects. Dr. Dickson was awarded her PhD from the University of New Mexico and was a doctoral fellow with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Fellowship. She is a 2023-2026 Fellow with the national Betty Irene Moore Fellowship for Nurse Leaders and Innovators.
Prior to her academic career, Dr. Dickson held positions as a public health clinician and leader with federal, state, and county public health organizations, and served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Argentina and Guatemala. Through her research, teaching, leadership, and public engagement, Dr. Dickson is committed to improving health outcomes by strengthening and supporting the capacity of public systems and community organizations to create lasting improvements in health, education, and well-being.
Areas of Specialty
- Community engagement/CBPR
- Health Policy and Policy Implementation
- School and Adolescent Health Systems
- Public Health Systems and Leadership
Education
PhD, The University of New Mexico, 2018 (Nursing)
MSN, Samuel Merritt College, 2000 (Nursing)
BS, California State University, 1991 (Business Administration)
Certifications
RN: Registered Nurse
PHN: Public Health Nurse
Achievements & Awards
Betty Irene Moore Fellowship for Leaders and Innovators (U.C. Davis), 2023 – 2026
Key Publications
- Mason, D. J., Dickson, E., McLemore, M. R., & Perez, A. (Eds.). (2020). Policy & Politics in Nursing and Health Care (8th ed.). Elsevier.
- Dickson, E., Kuhlemeier, A., Adsul, P., Sanchez-Youngman, S., Myers, K., Akintobi, T. H., Rosas, L. G., Mendoza, J. A., Oetzel, J., Castro-Reyes, P., Alaniz, C., Jacquez, B., & Wallerstein, N. (2025). Developing the Engage for Equity institutional multi-sector survey: Assessing academic institutional culture and climate for community-based participatory research (CBPR). Journal of Clinical and Translational Science, 9(1), e44. https://doi.org/10.1017/cts.2025.20
- Dickson, E., Cogan, R., & Gonzalez-Guarda, R. M. (2025). Role of school nurses in the health and education of children. JAMA Health Forum, 6(1), e250116. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamahealthforum.2025.0116
- Dickson, E., Rishel Brakey, H., Wilson, P., Hackett, J., & McWethy, M. (2023). Classroom voices: Youth perspectives to direct school-based sexual health education. Sex Education 24(4), 479–496. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681811.2023.2218267
- Dickson, E., Crawford, L., Sparks, R., & Ciblis, A. (2023). “This has changed everything”: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on school nursing practice in New Mexico. The Journal of School Nursing, 41(2), 201-212. doi:10.1177/10598405231218532
- Sanchez-Youngman, S., Adsul, P., Gonzales, A., Dickson, E., Myers, K., Alaniz, C., & Wallerstein, N. (2023). Transforming the field: The role of academic health centers in promoting and sustaining equity based community engaged research. Frontiers in Public Health, 11, 1111779. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1111779
- Oetzel, J. G., Boursaw, B., Magarati, M., Dickson, E., Sanchez-Youngman, S., Morales, L., Kastelic, S., et al. (2022). Exploring theoretical mechanisms of community-engaged research: A multilevel cross-sectional national study of structural and relational practices in community-academic partnerships. International Journal for Equity in Health, 21(1), 59. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-022-01663-y
- Sánchez, V., Sanchez-Youngman, S., Dickson, E., Burgess, E., Haozous, E., Trickett, E., et al. (2021). CBPR implementation framework for community-academic partnerships. American Journal of Community Psychology, 67(3-4), 284-296. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajcp.12506
- Boursaw, B., Oetzel, J. G., Dickson, E., Thein, T. S., Sanchez-Youngman, S., Peña, J., et al. (2021). Scales of practices and outcomes for community-engaged research. American Journal of Community Psychology, 67(3-4), 256-270. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajcp.12503
- Dickson, E., & Brindis, C. B. (2021). The double bind of school nurses and policy implementation: Intersecting the street-level bureaucracy framework and teaching sexual health education. The Journal of School Nursing, 37(4), 280-291. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059840519868764
- Dickson, E., Parshall, M., & Brindis, C. D. (2020). Isolated voices: Perspectives of teachers, school nurses, and administrators regarding implementation of sexual health education policy. Journal of School Health, 90(2), 88-98. https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.12853
- Dickson, E., Magarati, M., Boursaw, B., Oetzel, J., Devia, C., Ortiz, K., & Wallerstein, N. (2020). Characteristics and practices within research partnerships for health and social equity. Nursing Research, 69(1), 51-61. https://doi.org/10.1097/NNR.0000000000000399
Gender
Female
Languages
- English
- Spanish
Research
- Principal Investigator, “Advancing Sexual Health Education Through Youth Engagement”, Moore Foundation, 2023 – 2026
- Principal Investigator, “Elevating Youth Engagement to Advance Sexual Health Education”, Hillman Foundation, 2023 – 2024
- Principal Investigator, “School Nurse Academic Partnership”, New Mexico Department of Health Office of School and Adolescent Health, 2023-2024
- Co-Investigator, “Enhancing Structural Competency in School-Based Health Centers to Address LGBTQ+ Adolescent Health Equity” (PI: Willging, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation), National Institutes for Health, National Institute for Nursing Research, 2023 – 2026
- Co-Investigator, “Engage for Equity PLUS: Testing Engagement Strategies to Promote Trustworthy Academic Institutions and Greater Diversity and Capacity for Patient and Community Leadership in Research” (PI: Wallerstein and Sanchez-Youngman), Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), 2024 – 2027
- Principal Investigator, “COVID-19 Impact on School Nurses and Delivery of School Health”, National Association of School Nursing, 2021 – 2023
- Principal Investigator, “Advancing Sexual Health Education to Improve Adolescent Health in New Mexico: Staff and Student Perspectives,” University of New Mexico, Clinical Translational and Science Center, 2019 – 2020
- Co-Principal Investigator, “Virtual Communities of Practice: Measuring the Impact” University of New Mexico, 2021 – 2022
Courses Taught
- CBPR Summer Institute
- Mixed Methods Research
- Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods
- Healthcare Policy, Systems, and Financing for Advanced Practice
- Evidence-based Practice