معرفی
Melissa Dittberner serves as Faculty Associate Professor of Practice at the University of South Dakota's School of Health Sciences, based at the Center for Health Education. With over seven years of teaching and research experience in higher education and 11 years of leadership in harm reduction and prevention initiatives, her mission focuses on empowering individuals through evidence-based education and community engagement.
Her academic credentials include:
- Ph.D. in Counseling and Psychology in Education, University of South Dakota (2018)
- M.A. in Addiction Studies, University of South Dakota (2014)
- B.S. in Addiction Studies, University of South Dakota (2012)
Dr. Dittberner's research spans college substance use, sex trafficking, adult pedagogy, SBIRT (Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment), Telehealth, and the ECHO model. She integrates cognitive approaches to educational psychology with practical harm reduction strategies, emphasizing stigma reduction and trauma-informed care in addiction treatment.
Her publications demonstrate interdisciplinary innovation in health sciences education and substance use prevention, particularly through telehealth applications and community-based SBIRT implementation, reflecting strong collaboration across dental medicine, counseling, and public health disciplines.
Her extensive recognition includes:
- Entrepreneurship and Innovation for Biomedical Product Development (MIT, 2024)
- Outstanding Faculty Award Teaching and Service Excellence (USD, 2024)
- Remarkable Woman (NextStars, 2024)
- Women of Excellence Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence (SME, 2024)
- Emerging Leader Award (USD, 2023)
- Innovation to Impact Fellowship (Yale, 2022)
- Start an SUD Start-Up Challenge Winner (NIDA, 2021)
- Multiple Course Design and Open Textbook Fellowships (2015-2020)
She has secured significant grant funding including the Center for Teaching and Learning Grant (2022-2023), SBIRT implementation (2022), I Have Narcan, Do You? (2021-2022), and State Opioid Response (2019-2021). Her mentorship extends through 40+ national and international presentations on peer support, overdose prevention, and telehealth innovation, though formal advisees aren't documented.
Her community leadership includes Narcan training initiatives, Walk of Hope events, and collaborations with organizations like Volunteers of America and NAMI, demonstrating deep commitment to translating research into actionable harm reduction practices.
