Dr. Alexis Merculief is an Assistant Professor of Child Behavioral Health at the Ballmer Institute on University of Oregon's Portland campus. Alexis earned her MS and PhD in Human Development and Family Studies from Oregon State University, and was an inaugural member of the E3 Equity in Early Childhood Education postdoctoral fellowship at the Stanford Center on Early Childhood. Alexis is an Unangax (Aleut) tribal member and previously worked to promote education, health, and cultural connection for AI/AN children through youth program development at an urban AI/AN health organization in the Northwest.
Alexis is passionate about supporting the mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, cognitive, and behavioral health of young children from American Indian, Alaska Native (AI/AN), and other underserved populations. Alexis' work also supports the wellbeing of early childhood educators and investigates how to increase equity in early childhood education spaces. In her free time, she enjoys trivia and board game nights, being in nature, listening to the Ologies podcast on walks with her dog, Cooper, and exploring the delicious food scene in Portland with her family. Read more about Alexis and her work by visiting her website at www.alexismerculief.com.