Wendy Avila Rodriguez, MPH

Wendy Avila Rodriguez is a skilled program evaluator with experience in research and evaluation, technical assistance, public health education, program implementation, maternal and child health, and behavioral science on a domestic and global scale. She received her BA in International Studies and Global Health, Culture, and Society from Emory University (2016) and her MPH in Behavioral Sciences and Health Education from the Emory University Rollins School of Public Health (2018). Wendy has worked in the domestic public sector through her positions at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Georgia Health Policy Center.

Wendy’s areas of interest include Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Health Equity, Global Health, Racism and Health, School-Based Mental Health, and Substance Use Disorders. Her pursuit of a doctoral degree in Community Health Sciences with a concentration in Maternal and Child Health is motivated by her desire to improve the health of marginalized communities through an equitable lens as an aspiring Research Director and Research Assistant Professor. Through these roles, she wants to serve as a leader, facilitator, mentor, manager, mediator, and agent of development in the field of maternal and child health. Upon receiving her doctoral degree, she would like to continue working in an academic setting where she can work in research, evaluation, and application.

Fun Fact- Wendy never learned to ride a bike!

1. Smith, J. C., Alderman, L., Attell, B. K., Avila Rodriguez, W., Covington, J., Manteuffel, B., … & Minyard, K. (2021). Dynamics of Parental Opioid Use and Children’s Health and Well-Being: An Integrative Systems Mapping Approach. Frontiers in psychology, 2402. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.687641.
2. Beauregard, J. L., Hamner, H. C., Chen, J., Avila-Rodriguez, W., Elam-Evans, L. D., & Perrine, C. G. (2019). Racial disparities in breastfeeding initiation and duration among US infants born in 2015. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 68(34), 745. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6834a3
3. Avila, W. (2018).  In-Depth Assessment of Exclusive Breastfeeding Attitudes, Beliefs, Practices and Key Influencers of Behavior in Villa Guadalupe, Managua. Emory University Theses and Dissertations: https://etd.library.emory.edu/concern/etds/qn59q4032?locale=en