2021 MESA State Advisor Training

Dr. Tania Pacheco-Werner is a former MESA student (7th grade-12th grade) from Fresno, California. She is now Co-Director at the Central Valley Health Policy Institute at Fresno State. Dr. Pacheco-Werner is also a member of the California Air Resources Board in December and the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District. She is a medical sociologist by training and received her Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California, San Francisco.

A health policy researcher by training; her focus is on the neighborhood effects on health. She has published articles on the effects of air quality on maternal-child health. In addition, she has policy publications on the relationship between air quality mitigation and residential segregation. She is an expert in community engagement for policy efforts, most recently involved in the Fresno economic equity initiative DRIVE (Developing the Region’s Inclusive and Vibrant Economy). She is the co-creator of the COVID-19 Equity Project in Fresno County, which uses the community health worker model in the response to the pandemic. The curriculum for this model has been adapted in other counties.

Dr. Pacheco-Werner is a first-generation Mexican immigrant who grew up in the Central Valley. She hopes her work helps ground policy in the everyday practical challenges faced by communities in California. She lives with her husband and son in Sanger, California.