Denise Dickinson

Denise Dickinson is a public health researcher and practitioner with expertise in interventions, training and technical assistance, and evaluation studies relating to the prevention of risk behaviors—including tobacco and alcohol use and sexual risk behaviors—among children and adolescents. Ms. Dickinson has developed data collection protocols and instruments and managed large teams of data collectors for multiple longitudinal studies. She is experienced in qualitative data collection methods, including semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Additionally, Ms. Dickinson has designed interventions and developed related materials and curricula using an experimental learning approach.

Currently, she is working on projects focused on preventing pregnancy and fostering positive youth development among adolescents and increasing Medicaid enrollment of eligible children. In her role, Ms. Dickinson has supported a variety of clients, including the Administration for Children and Families’ Family and Youth Services Bureau, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and other federal and state agencies.

Before joining RTI in 2007, she managed large, multi-year research projects on children’s health at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation and the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health.

Ms. Dickinson speaks Spanish fluently and holds a certificate in Latin American Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She also teaches at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health on an adjunct basis.