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Dr. Noé R. Chávez’s remarkable journey to academia and ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ exemplifies dedication and passion. Dr. Chavez, a distinguished Community Psychologist, has found his academic home at Charles R. ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ University, where his commitment to social justice and community engagement for health equity aligns with ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ’s mission. His current research focuses on health equity and youth mental health, making significant contributions to our understanding and advancement of these crucial areas.

Q: Can you describe your journey to becoming a faculty member in your department at ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ?

A: My journey to ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ was long, with many ups and downs. It began in my hometown, at the El Paso-Juarez México border, where I graduated with a BS in Psychology, as a first-generation college student at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). I went on to earn my MA in Social/Personality Psychology at the University of California Riverside (UCR). I almost quit after my first two months at UCR; however, my dad reminded me of my dream and my doctoral mentor believing in me put me back on track. I followed my amazing mentor to the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) where I earned my PhD in Community Psychology. In Chicago, while in graduate school, I taught GED and ESL classes to Mexican immigrant parents, who reminded me of my parents, mentored youth, and worked with community activists on immigrant justice. I then took an unexpected pathway into medical settings and completed two postdoctoral fellowships: one at Columbia University Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital in Pediatrics and the other in Southern California at City of Hope. I found my academic home/niche at ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ, where our mission of social justice and community engagement for health equity resonates perfectly with my identity as a Community Psychologist.     

Q: What motivated you to pursue this career path?

A: I became intrigued with psychology in high school after reading about this field. I was super curious about the brain and mind and became interested in becoming a psychotherapist. Perhaps my extreme shyness and introversion influenced my frequent introspection about my feelings and thoughts. Also, my recurrent anxiety motivated me to learn more about how to manage anxiety and help others with this similar challenge. As an undergraduate at UTEP, I was an RA supporting a doctoral dissertation examining the relapse of patients with severe mental illness. What stood out in this research is how societal factors, like poverty, violence, and family dynamics, impacted relapse and mental health in general. It became clearer that psychotherapy, while valuable, may not be sufficient to address the ecology of mental health. In graduate school at UCR I struggled to fit in, and I remember walking to campus one day, wishing I was at a place where I could apply psychology research to work with communities to best support them.

Q: Could you share a particularly rewarding or challenging experience from your career that significantly influenced your approach to research and/or teaching?

A: A significant turning point for me was moving to Chicago, where I had the opportunity to work in the community. I still remember experiencing below zero weather for the first time but also taking my first course in my new program at UIC- Theories in Community Psychology. I fell in love! I was learning new concepts/theories tied to cultural diversity, ecological perspectives, community partnership, and social justice, and how they could help address a myriad of health and social/behavioral issues. My cultural identity and lived experience were welcomed and I felt I could leverage who I was to contribute to psychology and research. An area that was eye opening for me, was learning about Philosophies of Science. I was fascinated to find out that there was a whole history, philosophy, culture, and politics shaping our mindsets in research.  I had a light bulb moment – a lot of our current theories and methods were not set in stone, were limited, or might end up perpetuating the problems we were seeking to solve. I welcomed the challenge to think more critically, creatively, and wonder about new possibilities in psychology.

Q: Considering the evolving landscape of health equity and youth mental health, how do you stay updated on emerging trends and technologies to keep your teaching and research practices current?

A: I have been lucky to be more closely engaged with colleagues, mentors, and other experts in health equity and youth mental health. Since my second postdoctoral fellowship at City of Hope I have participated in various training fellowships or grants where I learned about the latest research or advocacy in these fields. More recently, and during my transition to faculty status at ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ, I’ve had new training fellowships and leadership positions in the Society for Community Research and Action (SCRA). These experiences, for example, led to an opportunity to co-edit a special issue on community-based participatory research and health equity in the American Journal of Community Psychology (AJCP), published in December 2020. I also enjoy reading and contributing my perspective to the latest research in diverse areas, including health equity and youth mental health, as a peer-reviewer for several journals, and in my role as member of the editorial boards of: AJCP, Journal of Prevention and Intervention in the Community, Journal of Latinx Psychology, and Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities.

Q: Are there any upcoming projects or initiatives in health equity and youth mental health that you are particularly excited about or that you think the university community should be aware of?

A: I am part of a team of researchers from across the United States focused on youth participatory action research (YPAR). I am a member of this team’s National Steering Committee (funded by a grant from the Bezos Family Foundation), tasked with the goal of developing a national network of YPAR researchers to offer training, guidance, and opportunities for collaborating on exciting new projects applying YPAR to address a diversity of challenges affecting youth. YPAR is an equitable research approach to empower youth in co-developing knowledge toward action in addressing injustices. Our scholarship and advocacy are part of a broader effort to engage our next generation of youth to bring hope for a new world where they are not simply surviving or worse, suffering, but where they can flourish, be in community, experience wellness, and feel justice.      

Q: What are the future goals and/or plans for growth of your work at ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ?

A: My future goals are inspired and guided by the rich history of community psychology (CP) and ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ. Both CP and ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ were born in the mid-1960s, inspired and shaped by the broader and local Civil Rights movements. CP sought a new paradigm that expanded the scope of psychology to encompass more holistic, diverse, and just approaches. ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ sought to improve the accessibility and quality of healthcare for residents in South LA and train the next generation of healthcare professionals who are committed to social justice in healthcare. I am honored to work with my ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ colleagues, mentors, students, and community partners to continue this legacy of pushing forward toward health equity. My plan is to continue supporting efforts, where I teach and mentor students, including local high school students within our ÇÑ×ÓÊÓƵ pipeline programs, to hopefully inspire them toward careers where they can leverage who they are and their education to achieve health equity. Lastly, I am committed to helping build one of our newest undergraduate programs in Psychology. The goal is to integrate community psychology principles, research, and support from community partners to train more students pursuing mental health careers or apply community psychology in clinical practice, research, or policy to best serve the health needs and improve the well-being of diverse patients and communities.