Doctoral Student Selected for 2023-24 Research Scholar Program

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (March 22, 2024) – A student from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University has been chosen as a scholar for the 2023-24 All of Us Research Scholar Program. 

Denise Dawson, a fifth-year doctoral student in social work from Cumberland County, North Carolina, will receive a stipend to participate in an eight-month program focused on professional development, hands-on health research experience, and access to opportunities. Additionally, she will have the privilege to attend the All of Us Research Convention.

This initiative, backed by the National Institutes of Health, pairs early career investigators with health research professionals to advance precision medicine research. The program is dedicated to high school, undergraduate, or graduate/professional students who aspire to pursue careers in the health field. 

Dawson, a Ph.D. candidate in the Joint Program in Social Work between N.C. A&T and with the University of North Carolina Greensboro, is passionately committed to paving her path as a future health researcher. She holds an MSW from East Carolina University and a B.A. in psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She successfully defended her dissertation in February and will graduate in May from A&T.

Prior to embarking on her doctoral degree, Dawson established herself as a licensed clinical social worker and clinical addiction specialist, with experience across various clinical, leadership and administrative roles. She is also a minority fellow of the Council of Social Work Education Program who is committed to furthering the mission of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to diminish the impact of substance abuse and mental illness in American communities.

Dawson will learn how to conduct scientific research using the All of Us Data Browser and Research Workbench, creating a specific project and poster, while sharpening the skills needed to support the future of biomedical research.

Her research interests span health equity, digital health interventions, social determinants of health and disparities among marginalized groups with chronic illnesses and mental health disorders.