Roger Harrison IDEAS (Inclusion, Diversity, and Excellence in Advocacy and Social Justice) National Award 2025

Dr. Elizabeth Pulgaron Honored with the Roger Harrison IDEAS Award

The Roger Harrison IDEAS Award honors healthcare professionals who advance equity and justice through integrated primary care. As a pediatric psychologist who has work in school-based primary care settings for nearly 10 years, Dr. Elizabeth Pulgaron embodies these principals. The University of Miami’s School Health Initiative (SHI) is a school-based integrated primary care program that serves more than 12,000 students annually in Miami-Dade County’s most under-resourced communities. Through clinical innovation, mentorship, research, and advocacy, Dr. Pulgaron has worked to transform access to mental health care for disenfranchised youth while building sustainable systems of integrated care. The Roger Harrison IDEAS Award honors sustained commitment to inclusion, diversity, advocacy, and social justice within integrated primary care. Through her work with SHI, Dr. Pulgaron has expanded equitable access to evidence-based care and research opportunities, incorporated culturally-responsive care into school-based clinics, increased training opportunities for healthcare professionals in integrated care for underresourced communities, and empowered minoritzed youth as health advocates. On a larger scale, Dr. Pulgaron has extended the reach of her efforts by publishing extensively on clinical practice within integrated primary care and with minoritized populations. Further, Dr. Pulgaron has actively influenced district policy to improve evidence-based care for one of the largest school districts in the country. These contributions represent a multi-level impact—from individual students and families to schools, communities, and healthcare systems with far-reaching impacts above her direct individual efforts. At every level, Dr. Pulgaron’s work has centered around disenfranchised and underserved youth, aligning directly with the values this award seeks to honor. Her efforts in this area deserve recognition and replication as she remains committed to advancing justice, equity, and excellence in pediatric integrated primary care.