She earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Social Work from New York University in 2003. Before entering the academy, Lourdes Dolores worked with and on behalf of people of color as a social worker, a psychotherapist, and an organizational consultant for 15 years. She was a National Institute of Mental Health (2008-2012) Minority Research Fellow and used the fellowship to conduct research about the relationships between stigma, self-esteem, and decision-making in young Black and Latino gay men in New York City. Lourdes Dolores’ research and clinical interests are resilience in LGBT people of color; sexual and substance-using decision making in young gay men of color; lesbian and queer women’s sexual health; health disparities faced by LGBT people of color; and the experiences of historically underrepresented faculty at community colleges.