Deana Around Him, DrPH, ScM, is a research scholar at Child Trends who aims to improve the well-being of American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) children and families. Her lived experience as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, and as a mother and relative, inform a research and evaluation career that respects Tribal sovereignty, builds on cultural strengths, and informs the policies and programs encountered by AIAN families.
Dr. Around Him often applies community-engaged and participatory approaches in her research. She is currently exploring American Indian youth perspectives of school climate, evaluating a culturally based parent training curriculum, and examining how home visiting has supported equitable outcomes for families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her training has focused on the social determinants of health, maternal and child health, and research ethics. She has collaborated with Tribal communities to develop and adapt interventions, build research capacity, and strengthen oversight of research conducted with Tribal populations. In addition to leading Child Trends’ development of an applied research agenda to advance the well-being of Indigenous children and families, she serves on the Tribal Early Childhood Research Center’s leadership team and is an adjunct faculty member at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing.
