Dara Méndez and La’Vette Wagner are the recipients of the inaugural University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences Community-Building Excellence Award for their work strengthening communities both at the University and within the city of Pittsburgh.
The Community-Building Excellence Award, conferred by the Office of Health Sciences Engagement and Enrichment, recognizes two people affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh’s schools of the health sciences who demonstrate an exceptional commitment to fostering connected, inclusive and supportive communities on Pitt’s campus or in neighboring areas.
Dara Méndez is an associate professor of epidemiology in the School of Public Health and is the founder and director of Pitt’s Equity in Maternal and Birthing Outcomes and Reproductive Health through Community Engagement (EMBRACE) Center of Excellence.
One of only 12 National Institutes of Health-funded maternal health centers of excellence in the United States, EMBRACE was codesigned with more than 15 community and governmental partners, including Healthy Start Pittsburgh, The Midwife Center and New Voices for Reproductive Justice. Rather than studying communities from the outside, Méndez and EMBRACE have built a model in which community members work together to create solutions to maternal and reproductive health inequities.
Through her Health Justice and Maternal and Child Health Equity Scholars Programs, Méndez has trained more than 40 public health research and practice scholars.
Outside of Pitt, Méndez serves as a board member of the Allegheny County Health Department, where her research and practice have transformed Allegheny County’s Maternal and Child Health and Chronic Disease Divisions, COVID-19 response, and approach to health-disparity data collection and representation. Through policy publications and expert testimony, Méndez has contributed to a nationwide understanding of racism's public health implications.
“Méndez has built a remarkable ecosystem of welcoming spaces that bridge the University of Pittsburgh and the surrounding community, particularly for historically marginalized populations,” said Associate Dean for Public Health Practice Tina Ndoh.
Carl Lawson, associate vice chancellor for engagement and enrichment, health sciences, presented the award to Méndez at the 2026 EMBRACE summit.
La'Vette Wagner, field coordinator for the Pittsburgh Hill/Homewood Research on Neighborhood Change and Health (PHRESH) at the University of Pittsburgh, has received the Health Sciences Community-Building Excellence Award in recognition of her extraordinary commitment to community health and engagement in Pittsburgh’s Hill District and Homewood neighborhoods.
A Hill District native who grew up in Bedford Dwellings, Wagner has devoted more than 15 years to bridging the gap between academic research and the communities it serves. Since joining PHRESH in 2011, she has managed field operations and resident data collectors while building the deep, trust-based relationships that have driven the study’s remarkable retention rate of more than 80% across 15 years, in communities historically wary of institutional research.
Deeply embedded in both the Hill District and Homewood communities, Wagner facilitates a critical and shared understanding of whether and how neighborhood changes affect the health of residents—information that is more salient than ever as both communities continue to undergo massive redevelopment.
Wagner’s impact extends well beyond her formal role in a research project. She serves as a fitness instructor at the Thelma Lovette YMCA, leads a Community Engagement Healthy Walking Club in partnership with the Pitt Community Engagement Center, and has attended hundreds of community meetings and events across both neighborhoods. She has also mentored University of Pittsburgh students and served on the Pitt Community Engagement Advisory Board and the Pitt Healthy Communities, Services and Lifestyle Project.
Wagner has built and sustained deep trust between the University and the Hill District and Homewood neighborhoods for the profound benefit of all involved.
Lawson presented the award to Wagner at a Hill District Community Engagement Center event.
