Sheena Nahm McKinlay

Sheena oversees research and technology innovation efforts, identifies emerging and promising practices, and tests new approaches to care that advance health equity. This work builds on over 15 years of experience at various nonprofit organizations and in academic research focused on utilizing participatory research to ensure that population health interventions are being designed, governed, implemented, and assessed by communities. She has worked specifically in cross-sector settings where multiple stakeholders ranging from large institutions to community-based organizations and resident leadership groups collaborate to improve care coordination and drive systems-level improvements.

Prior to joining Health Leads, Sheena worked on nutrition education and maternal-child health through community-driven program development and evaluation as Program Director at Para Los Niños, an education-based nonprofit that integrates mental health, public health, and social services in their work with children and families in Los Angeles County. There, she continued to build on past experiences in policy, communication, and research for various nonprofit organizations in Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and abroad. She has also taught at colleges and universities in the U.S. and served as Principal Investigator on several research projects.

Sheena earned a master’s of public health from Drexel University and has a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of California, Irvine.