Director
Dr. David E. Hayes-Bautista is Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Director of the Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. For more than four decades, he has been a leading scholar advancing understanding of Latino health, history, culture, and contributions to California and the nation. Dr. Hayes-Bautista earned his undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley and his PhD in Basic Sciences from the University of California, San Francisco, and previously served as the founding Executive Director of La Clínica de la Raza in Oakland, California.
His pioneering research on the Latino Epidemiological Paradox helped illuminate the complex relationships among culture, behavior, and health outcomes, while his more recent work examines how racial narratives shape research design, public policy, and health outcomes in increasingly diverse and multiracial populations. He is also the founder and Chief Demographer of the Latino GDP Project, which has brought national attention to the economic contributions of U.S. Latinos and demonstrated their vital role in the nation's economic growth.
Dr. Hayes-Bautista is the author of numerous influential publications, including The Burden of Support: Young Latinos in an Aging Society, El Cinco de Mayo: An American Tradition, La Nueva California: Latinos from Pioneers to Post-Millennials, and his most recent book exploring the role of Latinos in the California Gold Rush. His contributions to scholarship, health equity, and public service have been recognized with numerous honors, including the Association of American Medical Colleges' Herbert W. Nickens Award, the Ohtli Award from the Government of Mexico, and the California Wellness Foundation's Champions of Health Professions Diversity Award. A respected public intellectual, he is frequently sought for commentary on Latino health, demographics, history, and public policy in both English- and Spanish-language media.