Alex McEllistrem-Evenson, MA

Alex McEllistrem-Evenson is an information specialist for the Rural Assistance Center at the Center for Rural Health at the University of North Dakota (UND) School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Grand Forks.

The Rural Assistance Center (RAC) was established in 2002 as a rural health and human services “information portal” to help rural communities and other rural stakeholders access the full range of available programs, funding, and research that can enable them to provide quality health and human services to rural residents.

As an information specialist, McEllistrem-Evenson assists clients regarding the resources for their specific needs. He develops and maintains information guides on several topics regarding health and human services. Other duties include completing customized searches of databases for grant opportunities and research information, the collection of articles, reports, and data for the RAC webpage, and exhibiting at conferences.

Previously, he worked as a nonpartisan information specialist / writer for the Minnesota House of Representatives in St. Paul, and has taught college English courses at the University of North Dakota and the University of St. Thomas. He received a master’s degree in English in 2005 from UST and a bachelor’s degree in English from St. John’s University and the College of St. Benedict in 2000. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in English at UND.

Established in 1980, the Center for Rural Health is one of the nation's most experienced rural health organizations. It has developed a full complement of programs to assist researchers, educators, policymakers, health care providers and, most importantly, rural residents to address changing rural environments by identifying and researching rural health issues, analyzing health policy, strengthening local capabilities, developing community-based alternatives, and advocating for rural concerns.

Contact Information:

Tel:	(701) 777-6026
Email:	aevenson@medicine.nodak.edu
Web site:	http://ruralhealth.und.edu

Projects

• Rural Assistance Center -- The Rural Assistance Center (RAC) is a national rural health and human services information portal.
• Rural Health Research Gateway (Diverse Audiences) -- Examines and produces effective dissemination products and approaches for diverse audiences at the national, state and community level.

Publications

• The Rural Assistance Center: Free Resources at Your Fingertips, Madler, A., Gabriel, H., McEllistrem-Evenson, A., & Spencer, K., The Good Stuff: Official Magazine of the North Dakota Library Association, 39 (2)26-27. 2009