Denise Dawson is one of only 25 doctoral recipients to be accepted for the Council on Social Work Education’s (CWSE) Minority Fellowship Program for the 2022-23 year. Dawson is earning her Ph.D. in the Joint Programs in Social Work from UNCG and N.C. A&T. The fellowship began in October.

The doctoral Minority Fellowship Program offers training, a stipend, mentorship and other professional development support to doctoral social work students who are passionate about meeting the mental health and substance use treatment needs of diverse communities.

Risk factors, such as genetic predispositions, stress, poor diet, access to proper care, and insurance coverage significantly influence whether people receive care and the quality of care they receive.

I’m using my career to advance social justice through my current health equity dissertation work. My current research study entitled, ‘Utilizing Intersectionality to Explore Associations between Anxiety and Hypertension Based on Race and Gender,’ investigates whether gender and race moderate the relationship between anxiety and hypertension in adults in the United States.

— Denise Dawson,
Joint Programs in Social Work Doctoral student