Dr. Prieto joined Mason in the fall of 2023. His research interests focus on aging and sexual health among older adults. He is passionate about advancing the discussions concerning sexual satisfaction and health disparities among older LGBTQIA+ populations. Prieto has published in several health-related journals such as Annals of LGBTQ Public and Population Health and the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. He earned his B.S. in Sociology/Criminal Justice at Central Michigan University, M.S.W. at the University of Michigan, and his Ph.D. at Michigan State University.
Dr. Yanika Kowitlawakul is an Associate Professor in the School of Nursing and has been involved in teaching in undergraduate and postgraduate programs. Kowitlawakul’s research interests are educational technology and patient safety.
Dr. Villodas joined Social Work in Fall 2022. She teaches practice courses and researches how social factors affect youth mental health at all levels.
Dr. Perry, trained as an epidemiologist in public health, is the Dean of the College of Public Health at George Mason University.
Dr. MB (Marybeth) Mitcham is an Assistant Professor and the Director of the Online MPH Program in the Department of Global and Community Health. Mitcham’s research interests include the effect of intergenerational learning opportunities on healthy behavior patterns, rural gender identity, the intersection of plant-rich diets and rural populations, and effective public health education methods.
Dr. Michelle D. Hand is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work. Her research focuses on empowerment building approaches to address sexual violence and trauma among at-risk non-dominant populations, including in later life. Thus, she studies causes and impacts of violence and trauma as well as arts- and horticulture-based interventions (e.g., community gardens, farms and murals) to support healing, informed by extensive interdisciplinary research and clinical experience.
Bethany Cieslowski is Simulation Coordinator at GMU Nursing. She holds degrees from UVA, Columbia, and a DNP from Duke.
Dr. Erin Maughan's research focuses on measuring the effectiveness of school nursing and school health programs that support the need of students (K-12) living in vulnerable situations. Her particular research focus looks at the infrastructure needed to support appropriate school nurse staffing and identifying indicators that best measure the effectiveness of school nursing and school health. Dr. Maughan uses her professional work experience and expertise in mix-method and qualitative designs to not only strengthen the evidence related to school health, but also obtain the data needed to change health and education policy.
Drawing on 20 years of practice as a nurse-midwife, Dr. Karen Trister Grace’s research interests are in reproductive coercion, intimate partner violence (IPV), pregnancy intention and health disparities. Dr. Grace recently conducted research addressing solutions to housing instability for IPV survivors, as well as a mixed methods study exploring reproductive coercion in Latina women. She has an interest in birth outcomes related to IPV and reproductive coercion, and the intersection with unintended pregnancy. Dr. Grace is the lead editor of the 3rd edition of the “Prenatal & Postnatal Care: A Person-Centered Approach” textbook.
Dr. Michelle S. Williams develops culturally tailored cancer prevention interventions in the U.S. Deep South and Ghana using mHealth and mixed methods.
