Guillermo “Willy” Prado’s custom “U” license plate reveals what drives him: RSRCH. “I’ve always said what I’m most passionate about is research,” he explained. “I love to support faculty to excel and grow their research, and I especially love mentoring early career faculty and Ph.D. students.” Since his own first year pursuing epidemiology and public health as a Ph.D. student at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Prado’s investigations have been supported continuously by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Funding for NIH grants that Prado has either led or contributed to total over $100 million to date.
Now, after a decade of successively higher-profile leadership roles at his alma mater, including Graduate School dean, vice provost for faculty affairs, and most recently interim executive vice president for academic affairs and provost, this double ’Cane is glad to return to his research roots. “I’m pleased to announce that Dr. Willy Prado has agreed to serve as associate dean for research affairs,” shared School of Nursing and Health Studies Dean Hudson P. Santos in July. “Dr. Prado is exceptionally well-suited for this position. I am confident his deep expertise and extensive leadership experience will significantly advance our research priorities and strengthen our academic mission.”
In addition to being appointed associate dean, Prado has been named a Distinguished University Professor of Nursing and Health Studies. “I’m very excited to be back home at the School of Nursing and Health Studies for so many reasons,” said Prado. “This role is perfect for me. I am thrilled to support all of our outstanding faculty and Ph.D. students in advancing their research as we work together toward our shared goal of becoming a top 5-funded NIH School of Nursing and Health Studies in the near future. I want us to be preeminent.”
Prado, a Fellow of the prestigious National Academy of Medicine, is principal investigator (PI) of Familias Unidas, a nationally recognized NIH-supported parenting intervention aimed at improving family dynamics and communication among Hispanic youth and their families. He is also PI for the school's collaborative NIH-funded Center for Latino Health Research Opportunities and co-director of the Implementation Science Core for the University's Center for HIV Research in Mental Health (CHARM). He and his research team have been on the school’s faculty since 2020, and Prado retains secondary appointments at the Miller School in public health sciences and at the College of Arts and Sciences in psychology.
