Dace Svikis, Ph.D.
Deputy Director, Institute for Women's Health
Email: dssvikis@vcu.edu
Dace Svikis is a Professor in the Departments of Psychology, Psychiatry and Obstetrics/Gynecology at VCU. She also serves as Deputy Director of the VCU Institute for Women’s Health, Director of the AWHARE Program (Addiction and Women’s Health: Advancing Research and Evaluation), and Co-Director of the International Programme in Addiction Studies. Dr. Svikis is a clinical psychologist who has been involved in addiction research for over 30 years, with expertise in clinical trials of pharmacological and behavioral interventions.
She is best known for her work in perinatal substance use and substance use disorders and has championed inclusion of sex as a biological variable in the design and interpretation of research. Since coming to VCU, her focus has shifted to transdisciplinary studies and the use of technology to bridge the research to clinical practice gap. Dr. Svikis has served as PI on numerous R01s and has served on a variety of NIH study sections and special review panels. She is dedicated to student and faculty mentoring, serving as primary mentor on a variety of K01/K23 junior faculty as well as F31 and R36 doctoral student research training awards. In addition, Dr. Svikis is active in international work, frequently serving as mentor to scholars in the Humphrey Fellowship program at VCU.