Meet the Team
Dr. Thomas Kim
Thomas Kim, MD, MPH, has served as the Medical Director and Medical Epidemiologist at the California Rural Indian Health Board (CRIHB) and the California Tribal Epidemiology Center since 2008. After his medical and public health training, he served as a Medical Officer with the Indian Health Service on the Colville Reservation in Washington State from 2002 to 2006. In addition to his clinical responsibilities, he supervised the Tribal Diabetes Prevention Program. He continued his training through an applied epidemiology fellowship with the CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service and was stationed at the California Department of Public Health. Currently at CRIHB, he addresses a wide range of health service and public health priorities of California Tribal communities. These areas include clinic accreditation, telehealth expansion, clinical workforce development, public health service capacity building, and special epidemiology projects. In addition, he works toward developing cross-jurisdictional and cross-sector collaborations to further strengthen Tribal clinical and public health services.
Dr. Anna Epperson
Dr. Anna Epperson is an Assistant Professor of Health Psychology in the Department of Psychological Sciences at the University of California, Merced. Her research focuses on racial/ethnic disparities in health behavior, exploring how social and cultural factors impact health behavior and perceptions of health risk, particularly in American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN) and Latinx communities. She examines health behavior through community-based research and current projects focus on: 1) increasing vaccine confidence and uptake among AIAN and Latinx communities; and 2) reducing substance use among at-risk populations (e.g., AIAN youth, Latinx young adults). Prior to joining the faculty at UC Merced, Dr. Epperson was an Instructor of Adolescent Medicine in the Department of Pediatrics at Stanford University School of Medicine. She earned her PhD in Health Psychology from the University of California, Merced, an MA in Experimental Psychology from California State University, Stanislaus, and a BA in Molecular and Cellular Biology from the University of California, Berkeley. She completed postdoctoral training at the Stanford University Prevention Research Center as an National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute T32 research fellow in Cardiovascular Disease Prevention. She is an enrolled member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma.
Luis Solorio
Luis Solorio was born and raised in Tulare, CA. He recently graduated with honors from the University of California, Merced, earning a B.A. in Psychology and Public Health. He is currently the Research Lab Manager within Dr. Anna Epperson's health psychology research lab. He is currently working on a research project examining cannabis-related behaviors and perceptions of health risks among Latinx young adults. Prior to joining the faculty at the University of California, Merced, Luis completed a year-long clinical internship with the Merced County Behavioral Health & Recovery Services center under the Substance Use Disorder Division.
Mary Garcia
Mary Esperanza Garcia was born and raised in the San Joaquin Valley and transferred from community college with a UC Regents Scholarship to the University of California, Merced. While attending University, Mary received a Bachelor's in psychology and completed an internship at the Nicotine and Cannabis Policy Center where she investigated the cessation related needs amongst Latinx tobacco users in the Central Valley. Mary is currently the Research Coordinator in the Epperson Lab for the Connect/Conectados: Social Networks and Health among Indigenous Californians Research Collaborative grant project. Mary’s research interests are grounded in a commitment to address the health disparities that continue to affect central Californian’s and other vulnerable populations.
