Dr. Elena Ruíz

Biography

Elena Ruíz is the founder and director of the Research Institute for Structural Change (RISC) at Michigan State University, where she holds a tenured faculty appointment in Philosophy as well as affiliations with American Indian Indigenous Studies and Chicano Latino Studies. Her work focuses on structural justice and gender-based violence, contributing to social action research programs in collaboration with community organizations dedicated to achieving structural change. Dr. Ruíz has published extensively on topics related to gender-based violence and structural oppression, including serving as the Principal Researcher for the Gender-Based Violence MeToo organization and authoring the book 'Structural Violence' published by Oxford University Press. Dr. Ruíz is currently accepting doctoral students in dual enrollment programs (JD, MD, MPH, PPA) who are interested in working on policy-based solutions to issues of gender-based violence including sexual assault, rape, domestic violence, intimate partner violence, and teen dating violence. Her research efforts have garnered global attention and support from advocacy organizations and philanthropic groups.

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