Lauren Martin
Associate Professor
I grew up in the Western suburbs of Minneapolis, MN. My family roots are primarily from the British Isles, mostly Irish and Scottish. I have relatives who came to what is now the United States before the American Revolution and as recently as the 1930s. I’ve done a lot of work to understand my family history and the legacies my ancestors passed down to me so that I can be firmly rooted in who I am and how I came to be where I am now. I use participatory and action research approaches to conduct qualitative, mixed-methods, and collaborative research rooted in strengths, meaning-making, and experience. For over 20 years, I have worked closely with lived experts, communities, and leaders to understand and reduce harms related sex trading, sexual exploitation, trafficking, sexual violence to promote community health and flourishing. For my professional identity, I trained in Anthropology. I have held several positions at the University of Minnesota. I am currently an associate professor at the School of Nursing, and I serve as the Assistant Vice Provost for Community Engaged Research in the Office for Public Engagement. Before that I was the Director of Research at the Urban Research and Outreach-engagement Center (UROC) at the University.
Barbara McMorris
Professor
I am a cisgender, white, able-bodied woman born and raised in Montana without lived experiences of XX [homelessness or sex trading]. My research agenda focuses on adolescent and young adult health, using positive youth development and social-ecological theories. I am a university professor who works in long-term collaborative relationships with community partners and international teams on health topics such as substance use, violence, bullying, sex trading, mental health, and housing insecurity. A primary goal is to share power and decision-making on project teams and across partnerships.
G. Nic Rider
Associate Professor
Nic Rider, Ph.D. (they/them) is an associate professor and a licensed psychologist at the Eli Coleman Institute for Sexual and Gender Health (ISGH). They are also the Director of the National Center for Gender Health. Dr. Rider’s research broadly focuses on improving healthcare for and exploring resilience among marginalized communities, with a focus on sexual and gender diverse people of color. They often focus on social and structural factors impacting the lived experiences of historically excluded communities and resilience/strengths identified by these communities. Dr. Rider’s clinical training includes psychotherapy and assessment experiences in a university counseling center, hospital settings, private practice, community clinic, residential treatment, and juvenile justice settings. Their professional interests are in the areas of intersectionality, improving various health disparities, sexual health and pleasure, decolonizing healing justice, systems change and social justice advocacy. They serve as the Co-Chair for the Asian American Psychological Association’s Division on LGBTQQ and participate on committees advocating for queer and trans individuals globally. Dr. Rider received a doctorate in Counseling Psychology from Howard University in Washington, D.C.