Biography

Director of Academic Support and Advising and Disability Access

As Director of Academic Support and Advising, Dr. Michelle Juarez develops and oversees academic support and advising and disability access for all students at KPSOM, helping them to maximize their performance. Prior to joining the school, Dr. Juarez served graduate and undergraduate students at the University of Southern California for eight academic years. Most recently, she oversaw Doctor of Pharmacy academic advisement on the USC Health Sciences Campus. Previously, she served as Lead Academic Advisor for undeclared, undecided, and Undergraduate Success Program students in the Provost’s Office and as an Academic and Career Advisor at the USC Leventhal School of Accounting. Dr. Juarez also has teaching experience as an adjunct faculty member at Whittier College and the University of Southern California. Dr. Juarez obtained her BA degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, and her MS in College Counseling and Student Development from Azusa Pacific University. She earned her Doctor of Education from the University of Southern California, with a focus on educational psychology/higher education leadership. Dr. Juarez’s dissertation, “And Still We Rise: Examining the Strengths of First-Generation College Students,” looks at the Community Cultural Wealth (strengths) that first-generation college students bring with them to college to succeed.

A headshot of Michelle Juarez, EdD