Biography
Page-Reeves received a BA in History and International Development from Washington University in 1984. After graduation from college, she was a research assistant at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC, and spent time volunteering, studying Spanish and traveling in South America. She received two graduate degrees in Cultural Anthropology from the City University of New York--an MA in 1993 and a PhD in 1999. She conducted 26 months of field research in highland Bolivia and the focus of her dissertation was on the internal dynamics of an Indigenous women's sweater knitting cooperative, the politics of development funding and the dynamics of the global market for hand crafts. Following completion of her dissertation in 1999, she took time to raise her family. Since 2006, she has worked primarily on health equity issues. She has two edited collection books--one in 2014 on women and food insecurity, and one in 2019 on community, culture and wellbeing. In recognition of her skills and contributions, she was appointed and reappointed as a member of the New Mexico Advisory Committee to the US Commission on Civil Rights and was recruited to join the national Scholars Strategy Network and to serve as President of the Southwest Anthropological Association. Her work to design patient-engaged approaches to research has national recognition. She has a track record of significant funding, including from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) (multiple engagement awards and a highly competitive full research award), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Her training as an anthropologist provides her with experience for designing and conducting research using an ethnographically inspired approach.
Personal Statement
Research Focus
My scholarly interest is in understanding and addressing the causes and impacts of poverty, the social determinants of health, and issues of health disparity/health equity. My research focuses on critical health problems and significant challenges to wellbeing faced by at-risk populations in New Mexico. My training as a cultural anthropologist using a political economic conceptual framework and my expertise in gender theory lead me to design research that asks innovative questions and uses creative methods. I have had projects on topics including: food insecurity; diabetes; food allergy; food stamps; local food systems; social isolation and depression; Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education for Native Americans; the politics of GED programing; addressing non-medical social determinants in medical settings with a focus on screening and community health workers (CHWs); and defining best practices for community-engaged research processes.
I have a large group of academic collaborators inside of UNM (at HSC and main campus), at NMSU, and at academic institutions in other states. I use a community-engaged ethic and approach to developing research projects and I have multiple ongoing community-based relationships. I conceptualize the vast majority of my research projects through dialogue with or as a result of requests from my partners in the community. This work dovetails with the missions of the HSC, the OCH and FCM to address health issues that are identified as priorities by communities
Areas of Specialty
Health Equity
Health Disparities
Social Determinants of Health
Community Engaged Research
Education
1999 PhD, Anthropology
The City University of New York (CUNY) Advisor & Mentor: Dr. June Nash
Significant course work: Dr. Eric Wolf and Dr. William Roseberry
1993 MA, Anthropology
The City University of New York (CUNY) Advisor & Mentor: Dr. June Nash
Significant course work: Dr. Eric Wolf and Dr. William Roseberry
1984 BA, History & International Development (Double-Major)Washington University in St. Louis Mentor: Dr. Lois Beck
Certifications
1999 PhD, Anthropology
The City University of New York (CUNY)
Advisor & Mentor: Dr. June Nash
Significant course work: Dr. Eric Wolf and Dr. William Roseberry
1993 MA, Anthropology
The City University of New York (CUNY)
Advisor & Mentor: Dr. June Nash
Significant course work: Dr. Eric Wolf and Dr. William Roseberry
1984 BA, History & International Development (Double-Major)
Washington University in St. Louis
Mentor: Dr. Lois Beck
Languages
- English
- Spanish
Courses Taught
N/A
Research and Scholarship
Page-Reeves' funding highlights include:
She received a $2.6 million NIH R01 grant for a project to test a novel peer support group approach to reduce social isolation and depression among female Mexican immigrants.
She has contributed to research on diabetes in the Latino community through multiple awards including Co-PI with her Community Partner of a $2.3 million, 3.5-year Full Research Award from the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI).
She was Principle PI of a $1.3 million, 3-year NSF grant for collaborative research with the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) and investigators at Northwestern University to explore issues that contribute to success among Native Americans in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
She was the Project Director for “Fiestas,” a $175,000 NIH-funded 2-year project through the UNM NM CARES Health Disparities Research Center (Williams, PI) that explored food insecurity and women's social networks in a historic Albuquerque community.
Significant Publications:
Page-Reeves, Janet, Ananda Marin, Maurice Moffett, & Kathy DeerInWater (2018 IN PRESS). Wayfinding as a Concept for Understanding Success Among Native Americans in STEM: “Learning how to map through life.” Cultural Studies of Science Education
Page-Reeves, Janet (ed.) (2014). Women Redefining the Experience of Food Insecurity: Life Off the Edge of the Table. Lexington Books of Rowman & Littlefield. Lanham, Maryland. (Republished in Paperback edition 2016)Page-Reeves, Janet, Sarah Shrum, Felisha Rohan-Minjares, Tamara Theideman, Jackie Perez, Carla Cordova, Ambroshia Murrietta, Francisco Ronquillo (2018). Addressing Syndemic Health Disparities Among Latina Immigrants Using Peer Support. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities. Published online Dec. 3, 2018. DOI: 10.1007/s40615-018-00535-y
Page-Reeves, Janet, Lidia Regino, Maria Tellez, Blanca Pedigo, & Esperanza Perez (2018). Engaging Latino Patients in Diabetes Research: What We Are Learning. Practicing Anthropology 40(3): 35-40.
Page-Reeves, Janet, Lidia Regino, Cristina Murray-Krezan, Molly Bleecker, Erik Erhardt, Mark Burge, Elaine Bearer, & Shiraz Mishra (2017). A Comparative Effectiveness Study of Two Models for Culturally Competent Diabetes Self-Management Programming for Latinos from Low-Income Households. BMC Endocrine Disorders: Protocol Section. 17: 46. DOI 10.1186/s12902-017-0192-4
Page-Reeves, Janet, Joshua Niforatos, Shiraz Mishra, Lidia Regino, Andrew Gingrich & Robert Bulten (2013). Health Disparity and Structural Violence: How Fear Undermines Health Among Immigrants at Risk for Diabetes. Health Disparities Research and Practice 6(2): 30-48.