Lailea Noel

Dr. Lailea Noel serves as Assistant Professor and Meadows Foundation Fellow at the Steve Hicks School of Social Work, The University of Texas at Austin, where she directs the Institute for Collaborative Health Research and Practice. Her work focuses on advancing health equity through community-engaged system science research in rural settings.

Her research examines how social determinants of health and mental health access barriers impact medical treatment utilization in isolated rural communities. Dr. Noel specializes in building interdisciplinary partnerships between communities, social scientists, and healthcare providers to develop precision supportive care models, particularly for rural cancer survivors. Her methodology emphasizes community-based system science and recruitment of marginalized populations into research.

Recent publications reveal a concentrated research trajectory on health equity interventions for rural cancer care, integrating community participatory approaches to address service delivery gaps and social determinants.

Key recognitions include:

• Meadows Foundation Fellow in Quality of Life in the Rural Environment
• Donald D Harrington Faculty Fellow
• Hogg Foundation for Mental Health Fellowship
• UT Livestrong Cancer Institute faculty innovation grant

Dr. Noel currently leads an American Cancer Society-funded project addressing mental health and cancer care access for rural Central Texas survivors, while serving on national boards for the Association of Community Cancer Centers and Association of Oncology Social Workers. Her grant portfolio demonstrates strong community partnership development with state agencies and healthcare systems.

As Director of the Institute for Collaborative Health Research and Practice, she oversees interdisciplinary teams applying system science methodologies to rural health challenges, with current projects spanning 7 Texas regions to model community-level mental health service barriers.