Suzanne Held

Suzanne Held has been a faculty member in the Department of Health and Human Development for 23 years. She served as associate dean for research development for the College of Education, Health and Human Development from 2013-16. Held has become a leader in improving Native American health and addressing health disparities using community-based participatory research approaches.  One project, called “Messengers for Health,” is an NIH-funded project to improve chronic illness among Crow Indians in Montana (The Banniilaa study).  As a co-principal investigator, Held successfully secured more than $1 million to address the under-representation of American Indians in health sciences and biomedical research careers. She has also successfully funded and mentored American Indian and non-Native women scholars to participate in many of her research projects. As associate dean for research development, she was also responsible for establishing a grant-writing bootcamp and mentoring programs for new faculty. Held has been a leader of the Montana State University Women’s Faculty Caucus. She was recognized with the distinguished mentor award in 2014 and received the Women in Science Distinguished Professorship in 2018. 

Her dedication to improving health, often focused on women and communities, has impacted countless people at MSU and across Montana.

Photo: MSU Communications