Heidi Rueda, Ph.D.
- John E. Christensen Community Chair in Child Welfare
- Grace Abbott School of Social Work, Associate Professor
She/Her/Hers
General Information
Biography
Dr. Heidi Rueda is the John E. Christensen Community Chair in Child Welfare. She is a returning UNO alumnus, graduating in 2004 with degrees in Spanish and Psychology. She enjoys partnering with the community to raise awareness of teen dating violence and to educate adolescents with skills and knowledge to have healthy dating and peer relationships.In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter, and two dogs. She also likes yoga, singing, and collaging.
Teaching Interests
Dr. Rueda teaches Human Behavior in the Social Environment (HBSE). In the past, she has also taught courses in Spanish, Program Evaluation, Field Seminar, and Ethics.
Research Interests
Dr. Rueda's research focuses on adolescent dating and sexual relationships within ecodevelopmental contexts, particularly among understudied youth populations including Latino/a/x youth, pregnant and parenting youth in foster care, and youth with disabilities. Within a holistic approach to dating health, she aims to prevent teen dating violence and to foster strong foundations for healthy adolescent and adult partnering.
Service Summary
Nationally, Dr. Rueda is on the Board of Directors for the National Violence Prevention Hotline and is a Network Co-Lead for the Social Work Grand Challenge of Building Healthy Relationships to End Violence. Locally, she partners with a number of youth-serving organizations and uses community based participatory methods to enact meaningful, evidence-informed, and lasting positive change. She is affiliated with a number of professional organizations, including the Society for Research on Adolescence (SRA), the Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR), and the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). She is also a co-moderator for Hx Social Work, an online international community affiliated with Heterodox Academy.