She is also a licensed professional psychologist. Valdez serves on the American Psychological Association Committee on Children, Youth and Families. She is the faculty director of the Advancing Health Equity and Diversity program in the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, where she provides mentoring and training to early career scholars and investigators in health disparities research. Her research is focused on the impact of family stress and sociocultural context on Latino children’s academic, social and emotional functioning.