Biography
Lauren B. Beach, JD/PhD (she/her) is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Medical Social Sciences and the Associate Director of the Evaluation, Data Integration, and Technical Assistance (EDIT) program within the Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Research and Wellbeing (ISGMH). Scientifically, Dr. Beach investigates the epidemiology of chronic physical health conditions over the life course among diverse sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations and people living with HIV (PLWH). She also studies how multilevel health and identity related stigmas affect healthcare quality, chronic condition management, and health outcomes of marginalized populations. Dr. Beach holds a K12 award from the Third Coast Center for AIDS Research to investigate social and biological mechanisms contributing to heart failure with preserved ejection fraction among PLWH.
Dr. Beach's education and training have followed an interdisciplinary path. As an alumna of the Joint Degree Program in Law, Science & Technology, she received her JD specialized in Health Law & Bioethics from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2012 and her PhD in Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology & Genetics from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities in 2014. For her PhD dissertation research, she studied the molecular mechanism of action of how ribonucleotide reductase inhibitors inhibit HIV-1 and HIV-2 replication. Prior to joining Vanderbilt, Lauren spent a year in Lusaka, Zambia, where she served as co-investigator of ACADEMIC, a large child mortality survey, run by the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ). To continue to advance her public health and clinical research skill sets, Dr. Beach next completed a postdoctoral research fellowship in behavioral diabetes and chronic kidney disease research at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Notably, while at Vanderbilt, Dr. Beach also served as the Director of LGBTI Research. To obtain advanced expertise in epidemiology and SGM health, Dr. Beach completed a 2 year postdoctoral fellowship within the EDIT program of ISGMH prior to joining the faculty of the Department of Medical Social Sciences in July 2019.
Dr. Beach is also active in community engaged, evidence informed advocacy efforts to improve the health and wellbeing of bisexual populations. Her time as a LGBTQIA advocate and leader began as an undergraduate at Michigan State University, where she held multiple student leadership roles dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion on campus. As a graduate and law student at the University of Minnesota, Lauren not only continued her work with LGBTQIA groups within the campus setting, but also expanded into serving the community at large. From 2010-2013, Lauren led the 501(c)(3) organization Bisexual Organizing Project (BOP) as Chairperson, transforming it from a largely Twin Cities focused organization into a nationally recognized non-profit. From 2009-2014, Lauren also served as a core organizer of BOP's annual BECAUSE Conference on bisexuality. Additionally, Lauren has served on the boards of the 501(c)(3) organizations the Queer Student Cultural Center, the Minnesota GLBTA Campus Alliance, the China AIDS Orphan Fund, and Healthy Kids: Brighter Future. In 2015, she helped co-found Tennessee's first non-profit organization dedicated to serving bisexual, pansexual, fluid, queer, QTPOC, and unlabeled communities, Bi Tennessee. She is also a founding member of the Bisexual Research Collective on Health (BiRCH) and a founding Steering Committee Co-Chair of the Chicago Bisexual Health Task Force (CBHTF).
In recognition of her academic excellence and community-minded leadership, Lauren has received many scholarships, fellowships and leadership awards. Among other honors, Lauren has received a Health Disparities Loan Repayment Award from the National Institute for Minority Health and Health Disparities, is a former National Institutes of Health Ruth L Kirchenstein National Research Service Award F31 fellow, a two-time Point Foundation alumna, a Mary A. McEvoy Award for Public Engagement and Leadership honoree, one of Advocate Magazine's 2013 40 Under 40 LGBT activists in the United States, a 2013 winner of the Minnesota Jaycee's Ten Outstanding Young Minnesotans award and one of the United States Jaycees Ten Outstanding Young Americans. On several occasions, she attended White House events and celebrations recognizing the LGBTQIA and bisexual communities, including co-leading the discussions on HIV/AIDS and the bisexual community on Celebrate Bisexuality Day.
In total, Lauren has given over 30 peer-reviewed and 40 invited expert presentations about SGM health disparities, health research, and communities at national research and community forums. Taken together, her track record demonstrates her lifelong commitment to work toward a larger objective of promoting health equity and improving healthcare quality for sexual and gender minority people through research, education, policy advocacy, and community engagement. You can follow her on Twitter @laurenbbeach.
Dr. Beach's education and training have followed an interdisciplinary path. As an alumna of the Joint Degree Program in Law, Science & Technology, she received her JD specialized in Health Law & Bioethics from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2012 and her PhD in Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology & Genetics from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities in 2014. For her PhD dissertation research, she studied the molecular mechanism of action of how ribonucleotide reductase inhibitors inhibit HIV-1 and HIV-2 replication. Prior to joining Vanderbilt, Lauren spent a year in Lusaka, Zambia, where she served as co-investigator of ACADEMIC, a large child mortality survey, run by the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ). To continue to advance her public health and clinical research skill sets, Dr. Beach next completed a postdoctoral research fellowship in behavioral diabetes and chronic kidney disease research at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Notably, while at Vanderbilt, Dr. Beach also served as the Director of LGBTI Research. To obtain advanced expertise in epidemiology and SGM health, Dr. Beach completed a 2 year postdoctoral fellowship within the EDIT program of ISGMH prior to joining the faculty of the Department of Medical Social Sciences in July 2019.
Dr. Beach is also active in community engaged, evidence informed advocacy efforts to improve the health and wellbeing of bisexual populations. Her time as a LGBTQIA advocate and leader began as an undergraduate at Michigan State University, where she held multiple student leadership roles dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion on campus. As a graduate and law student at the University of Minnesota, Lauren not only continued her work with LGBTQIA groups within the campus setting, but also expanded into serving the community at large. From 2010-2013, Lauren led the 501(c)(3) organization Bisexual Organizing Project (BOP) as Chairperson, transforming it from a largely Twin Cities focused organization into a nationally recognized non-profit. From 2009-2014, Lauren also served as a core organizer of BOP's annual BECAUSE Conference on bisexuality. Additionally, Lauren has served on the boards of the 501(c)(3) organizations the Queer Student Cultural Center, the Minnesota GLBTA Campus Alliance, the China AIDS Orphan Fund, and Healthy Kids: Brighter Future. In 2015, she helped co-found Tennessee's first non-profit organization dedicated to serving bisexual, pansexual, fluid, queer, QTPOC, and unlabeled communities, Bi Tennessee. She is also a founding member of the Bisexual Research Collective on Health (BiRCH) and a founding Steering Committee Co-Chair of the Chicago Bisexual Health Task Force (CBHTF).
In recognition of her academic excellence and community-minded leadership, Lauren has received many scholarships, fellowships and leadership awards. Among other honors, Lauren has received a Health Disparities Loan Repayment Award from the National Institute for Minority Health and Health Disparities, is a former National Institutes of Health Ruth L Kirchenstein National Research Service Award F31 fellow, a two-time Point Foundation alumna, a Mary A. McEvoy Award for Public Engagement and Leadership honoree, one of Advocate Magazine's 2013 40 Under 40 LGBT activists in the United States, a 2013 winner of the Minnesota Jaycee's Ten Outstanding Young Minnesotans award and one of the United States Jaycees Ten Outstanding Young Americans. On several occasions, she attended White House events and celebrations recognizing the LGBTQIA and bisexual communities, including co-leading the discussions on HIV/AIDS and the bisexual community on Celebrate Bisexuality Day.
In total, Lauren has given over 30 peer-reviewed and 40 invited expert presentations about SGM health disparities, health research, and communities at national research and community forums. Taken together, her track record demonstrates her lifelong commitment to work toward a larger objective of promoting health equity and improving healthcare quality for sexual and gender minority people through research, education, policy advocacy, and community engagement. You can follow her on Twitter @laurenbbeach.
Curriculum Vitae
Click here for a copy of Lauren's CV (last updated August 2018).
Click here for a copy of Lauren's CV (last updated August 2018).
Press
Articles and blog posts featuring Lauren:
Dr. Lauren Beach Delivers Lecture on LGBTQ Culturally Responsive Health Care
Ten Women Leaders Breaking Barriers for Bisexual Representation
Listen to Lauren's interview of David Jay, founder of the Asexual Visibility Education Network
Listen to Lauren's interview on Illinois Public Media about her paper showing LGBQ teens may be at higher risk for diabetes
(story starts ~43 minutes into recording)
Diabetes Risk Higher among LGBQ Teens Than Heterosexual Teens, Study Finds
Dr. Lauren Beach Featured in ThinkProgress Article on Bisexual Health
Dr. Lauren Beach Speaking at "We See You: Countering the Invisibility of Bisexual Health"
Three Bisexual Point Leaders Attend First Ever White House Roundtable Discussion on Bisexuality
Dr. Lauren Beach Delivers Lecture on LGBTQ Culturally Responsive Health Care
Ten Women Leaders Breaking Barriers for Bisexual Representation
Listen to Lauren's interview of David Jay, founder of the Asexual Visibility Education Network
Listen to Lauren's interview on Illinois Public Media about her paper showing LGBQ teens may be at higher risk for diabetes
(story starts ~43 minutes into recording)
Diabetes Risk Higher among LGBQ Teens Than Heterosexual Teens, Study Finds
Dr. Lauren Beach Featured in ThinkProgress Article on Bisexual Health
Dr. Lauren Beach Speaking at "We See You: Countering the Invisibility of Bisexual Health"
Three Bisexual Point Leaders Attend First Ever White House Roundtable Discussion on Bisexuality