Amelie G. Ramirez, DrPH, is an internationally recognized health disparities researcher at UT Health San Antonio, where she is Chair and Professor of Population Health Sciences and Director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research. She has 30 years of experience conducting behavioral and communications projects to reduce cancer, increase screening rates and clinical trial participation, prove the efficacy of patient navigation for cancer patients, prevent tobacco use, and improve healthy lifestyles among U.S. Latinos.

Dr. Ramirez currently directs the Salud America! national multimedia program to empower its vast network of 300,000 community leaders to drive healthy policy and system changes to promote health equity and support for Latino families (www.salud-america.org and @SaludAmerica on social media). Dr. Ramirez also conducts breast cancer disparities research on quality of life and survivorship issues, and directs Quitxt, a bilingual tobacco-cessation service for young Latino adults using mobile-phone text messages; the service yielded a strong 21% quit rate among enrollees at follow-up. She also has trained/mentored 250+ Latinos in health fields, and leads the Éxito! training program (https://exitotraining.org/) to help master’s-level students and professionals pursue a doctoral degree and research career focused on Latino cancer.

Dr. Ramirez is a Susan G. Komen Scholar and a member of the National Advisory Council on Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD). Her recognitions include: 2007 election to the National Academy of Medicine; 2011 White House “Champion of Change”; 2014 APHA Everett M. Rogers Public Health Communication Award; 2018 Icons in Healthcare Award from CentroMed; and 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Behavioral Medicine. In Texas, Dr. Ramirez is on the San Antonio Mayor’s Fitness Council and is President of The Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas. Dr. Ramirez, a native of Laredo, Texas, earned MPH and DrPH degrees from UT Health Science Center at the Houston School of Public Health.