Current Faculty Collaborators

Lisa Sullivan, Ph.D., is Professor of Biostatistics, Mathematics and Statistics and Associate Dean for Education in Public Health and serves as a consultant to the Center on Addiction Research and Services. She is also Chair of the Biostatistics Department at the Boston University School of Public Health. Lisa is co-author of a textbook entitled Introductory Applied Biostatistics, and the recipient of numerous teaching awards including the Norman A. Scotch award and the prestigious Metcalf Award, both for excellence in teaching at Boston University . Lisa is a statistician on the Framingham Heart Study working primarily in developing and disseminating cardiovascular risk functions. She is active in multidisciplinary research projects in areas such as cardiovascular disease, cognitive function, HIV/AIDS, emergency medicine, prenatal diagnosis and autism.

Sara Bachman, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Research at the Boston University School of Social Work, has conducted extensive research and consultation in the area of state health policy for vulnerable populations, with a particular emphasis on issues related to serving vulnerable populations through managed care systems. She has also conducted research through a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Substance Abuse Policy Research Program to examine the best practices among managed care plans that provide substance abuse treatment services to individuals who receive SSI Disability benefits through Medicaid managed care plans. In addition Dr. Bachman is working with the Massachusetts Division of Health Care Finance and Policy to conduct multiple assessments of the impact of Massachusetts health reform initiatives.

Luz Marilis López, Ph.D., M.S.W., M.P.H. , joined the Boston University School of Social Work faculty in September 2005. Dr. López has almost 10 years of experience in the fields of HIV/AIDS and substance abuse working with diverse populations. She has served as program manager of federal SAMHSA and CSAT multi-site research programs for women with co-occurring substance abuse and psychiatric disorders and violence. Her research focuses on the areas of addiction, trauma, populations-at-risk, HIV prevention, and Latino culture. Dr. López was born and raised in Puerto Rico . She completed her MPH and Ph.D. degrees at Tulane University in New Orleans , Louisiana.

Joseph R. Merighi, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Human Behavior at Boston University School of Social Work and an Investigator at the Portuguese Center for Social Work History and Research in Lisbon, Portugal. Currently, Professor Merighi is on the editorial board of the Journal of Nephrology Social Work, and he serves as a consulting editor for Social Work and the Journal of Social Work Education. He has published much of his research in social work and psychology journals, and has been an invited speaker at national and international conferences. Prof. Merighi received an Outstanding Young Educator Award from the California Junior Chamber of Commerce and he was the recipient of a Teacher Scholar Award from the Institute for Teaching and Learning at San José State University.  In addition to his research and teaching, Prof. Merighi has provided consultation services to national and regional organizations such as the Council of Nephrology Social Workers, Health Education and Training Center, and United Cerebral Palsy. Professor Merighi received his MSW and PhD from the University of California at Berkeley.

Ruth Paris, PhD., is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Practice at Boston University School of Social Work, where she also serves as the Director of the Family Therapy Certificate Program. She has a program of research focused on family interventions and family processes. Through a series of funded multi-year research projects, Dr. Paris has evaluated and developed family-based interventions directed at the following issues: (1) isolated first time mothers in a home visiting program; (2) immigrant/refugee mothers receiving home-based services from bilingual/bicultural paraprofessionals; (3) mothers with postpartum depression and their infants in a dyadic home-based clinical treatment program; and (4) military service members with children under 5 years of age returning from Iraq or Afghanistan. The majority of these projects had a focus on diverse populations. She has served as a consultant on 2 federally funded projects with teams at Harvard School of Public Health focused on intimate partner violence and is currently an advisor on a K01 award recently funded by the NIH focused on beliefs and attitudes regarding corporal punishment in African American and Caucasian urban communities. Dr. Paris practiced clinical social work extensively with families in a variety of settings including Massachusetts General Hospital, Kaiser Permanente, and community mental health.

Humberto Reynoso-Vallejo, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor on Social Welfare Policy and Human Behavior at the Boston University School of Social Work. Dr. Reynoso-Vallejo has extensive experience working with diverse ethnic/racial groups in different geographical areas of Mexico, as well as in the Greater Boston Area. His major research interests include health services research, substance abuse, effects of social inequalities to racial/ethnic groups, and health related issues among diverse communities. His current research focuses on the role of social capital in substance abuse epidemiology and treatment. He was trained as an anthropologist in Mexico, received a master in social work from Simmons College, and his doctorate in social policy from Brandeis University.