Melanie Gonzalez, M.A., currently serves as an Evaluation Specialist at the Connecticut RISE Network, where she evaluates programs aiming to improve outcomes for young people in high school. She has a range of work experiences focused on increasing access to resources, improving quality of life outcomes, and building power and influence of marginalized and oppressed communities. She has worked to address community needs for over 7 years through direct service and support, partnership and coalition building, anti-racist community education and organizing, program evaluation, research, and organization development.
Melanie obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from Union College with a double major in Psychology and English and a Master of Arts in Community Psychology with a Concentration in Program Development. She has also received training in Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR), Patient-Centered Outcomes Research (PCOR), Results Based Accountability (RBA), Undoing Racism, health equity, social determinants of health, and youth-led community organizing.

Authored by Melanie Gonzalez, M.A.

Blog Post

Through Their Eyes: Examining Youth Homelessness with Photovoice

The support of the Aetna Foundation for the “Addressing the Health and Health-Related Social Needs of Homeless Youth” project gave the Weitzman Institute, an AcademyHealth organizational member, the unique opportunity to collaborate with young people experiencing housing insecurity during COVID to examine the web of factors contributing to homelessness in New Britain, Connecticut, through photovoice, a community based participatory research approach that uses photography and storytelling.
Posted By Melanie Gonzalez, M.A., Zeba Kokan, Brandon Azevedo, M.P.H, April Joy Damian, Ph.D., M.Sc.
Topics Building Healthy Communities Health Equity Public & Population Health