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Established in 1974, the annual Distinguished Faculty Lecture is dedicated to acknowledging the work of UMass Amherst's most esteemed and accomplished faculty members. The lecture series not only honors individual faculty members and their achievements, but also celebrates the values of academic excellence that we share as a community. Each honoree is presented with the Chancellor’s Medal, the highest recognition bestowed upon faculty by the campus.

Kalpana Poudel-Tandukar, 2025 Awardee

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Kalpana Poudel Tandukar.

Refugees bear the highest burden of mental health problems due to various traumatic experiences, including fleeing war, witnessing separation and death due to conflict, integrating into a new culture with limited communication, and managing social isolation. Existing interventions are primarily based on treatment models to improve access to and quality of care for refugees with diagnosed mental health problems in the U.S.; however, strength-based interventions aimed at preventing or reducing mental health problems are limited. 

Professor Kalpana Poudel-Tandukar will present the results of her community-engaged participatory action research studies to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression among Afghan, Bhutanese, and Ukrainian refugees resettled in western Massachusetts. She will discuss how she engages and empowers the refugee communities in analyzing community health needs and assets, setting health priorities, developing and evaluating program strategies, and disseminating results to impact community health positively.

In person and On campus event posted in Research and Scholarship for Faculty , Current students , and Public