IRISE Director
Assistant Provost for IE Research & Curriculum Initiatives
303-871-7784 | Email
Dr. Tom Romero is an Associate Professor at the DU Sturm College of Law and an Affiliate Faculty of the Department of History. In his role as Assistant Provost, Tom will be working to make the University of Denver one of the premier institutions in the country for the rigorous study of social and institutional inequality.
Graduate Assistant
Lisa Colón is a doctoral student at the Graduate School of Social Work. She earned her BA and MA in Psychology at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. Her research interests broadly involve the interruption of cycles of trauma. Her current research focus is understanding health and other disparities experienced by Puerto Ricans by viewing them through the lens of historical trauma. More specifically, she is interested in using what is known about historical trauma and relevant cultural practices to help Puerto Ricans overcome the effects of colonization, thereby reducing the health disparities.
Graduate Assistant
Ceema Samimi is a doctoral student at the University of Denver with interests in restorative practices and other models that empower communities. Her interests include alternatives to incarceration and restorative justice as a tool for positive youth development, youth voice, and inter-generational collaboration. She is specifically interested in how policies and structures of youth-serving organizations are influenced by legacies of colonization. Ceema earned her MPA at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and MSSW at Columbia University.
Administrative Postdoctoral Fellow
Cheri holds a PhD in Public Policy and Political Economy from the University of Texas, Dallas. Her dissertation work, quantitative and qualitative, analyzed the effect of neighborhood environment on academic outcomes in an area of concentrated poverty in south Dallas as part of a larger National Science Foundation funded quasi-experimental study. Following dissertation completion, Cheri led a successful advocacy campaign funded by the American Heart Association to address the food desert crisis in south Dallas. As the Administrative Post-Doctoral Fellow for IRISE, Cheri will work towards further development of IRISE 2.0 including the expansion of research resources and community outreach. Her research focus is neighborhood effects in health and education and urban policy analysis. Cheri also holds an MA from the Korbel School of International Studies in Global Finance, Trade and Economic Integration.
True to its interdisciplinary mission, IRISE has pulled together a group of scholars from multiple disciplines to serve on its advisory board. These faculty bring distinct and valuable visions of research, teaching, and service that enhance and contribute to the study of (in)equality.
For more information on the advisory board, please see their research profiles on the Affiliate Faculty Page.
