Denise Dillard, PhD, is an Inupiaq Eskimo and was born in Fairbanks and raised in Anchorage. Denise is a psychologist and has conducted postdoctoral quantitative and qualitative research since 1998. Until 2021, she served as the Director of Research for Southcentral Foundation for two decades. She is currently a tenured Professor in the Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine and Co-Director of the Institute for Research and Education to Advance Community Health at Washington State University, a research unit with more than 50 staff and faculty dedicated to promoting health and health care equity among diverse populations including American Indian and Alaska Native people. Her research portfolio is diverse addressing the wide-ranging health needs of American Indian and Alaska Native communities to include substance misuse. Dr. Dillard is also committed to building the capacity of American Indian and Alaska Native people and tribal organizations to conduct and lead research. Dr. Dillard has served on the National Institutes of Health Tribal Advisory Committee and serves on research advisory committees for Southcentral Foundation and the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium. She has a 23 year old son, 2 cats, and enjoys camping, kayaking, bike riding, crafting, and yoga in her free time.