Lead Behavioral Scientist, Division of Violence Prevention

CDC role

Melissa C. Mercado, PhD, MSc, MA, is a lead behavioral scientist in the Division of Violence Prevention at the CDC Injury Center. As an expert in youth and community violence and bullying prevention, she is part of the federal inter-agency StopBullying.gov editorial board and oversees the CDC Youth Violence Prevention Centers network. Dr. Mercado served in the internationally recognized Epidemic Intelligence Service, leads gaming and online communities research for violence prevention, and recently completed her tenure as an elected member of the CDC Latino/Hispanic Health Work Group Executive Committee.

Previous experience

Dr. Mercado has worked in the non-profit, public, and private sectors as a public health researcher and communicator for 20 years researching bullying, gaming, online communities, opioids and overdoses, self-harm and suicide, firearm violence, and youth violence. Her research is characterized by an emphasis on community and racial/ethnic minority groups and has been published in the media, at professional conferences, and in high-impact peer-review journals. Most recently, Dr. Mercado published an estimated assessment of US parents' self-reported changes in concern about children's bullying during the COVID-19 pandemic, and co-authored a CDC Vital Signs publication, Changes in Firearm Homicide and Suicide Rates — United States, 2019–2020. While serving in CDC's COVID-19 Response, Dr. Mercado led the conceptualization and development of the age-group specific, multilingual, and resources-rich COVID-19 Parental Resource Kit to help parents recognize and address children and youth's social, emotional, and mental health challenges during the pandemic.

Areas of expertise

• Youth violence
• Community violence
• Bullying prevention

Education

Dr. Mercado was recognized as a 2021 Outstanding Alumni at the University of South Florida College of Public Health, where she earned her PhD degree in Public Health (Community and Family Health / Maternal and Child Health). She also holds two master's degrees in epidemiology and communications.