Camillia K. Lui

Camillia K. Lui, PhD
Scientist
clui@arg.org 510-898-5842
EDUCATION
Camillia Lui received her MPH and MA in Community Health Sciences and Asian American Studies, and a PhD in Community Health Sciences from UCLA. During her doctoral studies, she specialized in sociology and demography and completed a NIDA predoctoral fellowship in addiction health services at UCLA’s Integrated Substance Abuse Program. She later completed an NIAAA postdoctoral fellowship in alcohol research at UC Berkeley and the Alcohol Research Group. Her research is grounded in theory-based, community-engaged approaches with expertise in mixed-methods designs and the analysis of population-level, administrative, and longitudinal survey data.
RESEARCH FOCUS
Camillia investigates how factors across life course and broader social environments, such as schools, communities, and policy systems, influence substance use and mental health. Her work spans alcohol and tobacco research, and mental health across the lifespan. Currently, Camillia leads research in three core areas. She studies patterns of heavy and high-intensity drinking over the life course to identify population-level risk factors. She also partners with community colleges to explore how tobacco-free policies and campus health services can reduce tobacco use and the co-use of alcohol and cannabis among young adults. By applying a socioecological framework and mixed-methods design, she examines youth suicide and access to mental health services in Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. Across her research, Camillia integrates advanced statistical techniques, qualitative methods, and community-engaged approaches to build evidence that strengthens prevention efforts, informs responsive policy, and improves systems of care for tobacco, substance use, and mental health.

Camillia is a scientist with over 20 years of experience in social epidemiology, community-engaged research and practice, and quantitative and qualitative methods. Her work focuses on the intersection of substance use, mental health, and public health, guided by theory-driven frameworks, community engagement, and a strong commitment to translating research into meaningful practice.

At the Alcohol Research Group (ARG), Camillia explores how social and educational systems shape patterns of alcohol, tobacco, and other substance use across the life course. Using longitudinal and population-level data, she identifies critical transition points, especially in education, as opportunities for prevention and intervention. Her current work focuses on community colleges as key settings for implementing interventions, from screening to campus-wide policies, to promote academic success, reduce substance use, and improve health and well-being.

Camillia is also deeply engaged in applied research focused on the prevention, intervention, and policy dimensions of substance use and mental health. She collaborates with community-based organizations to build organizational capacity to translate research and evaluation findings into effective programs. Since 2017, she provided technical assistance through Special Service for Groups under the CRDP Initiative, supporting Asian American and Pacific Islander organizations in implementing and evaluating community-defined evidence practices in mental health. Through this work, she has partnered with community organizations to conduct research on youth mental health and suicide prevention using mixed methods such as school-based surveys and focus groups.

Camillia also contributes to statewide public health strategy as a member of the California AA and NHPI Health Coalition Task Force and the California Department of Health Care Services’ Prevention State Epidemiological Workgroup.