Expertise

Lee’s research focuses on the biobehavioral mechanisms of persistent symptoms and recovery following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) or concussion. Her interdisciplinary work integrates cognitive, psychosocial, gait and balance, and oculomotor outcomes with peripheral epigenetic and digital biomarkers to better understand individual differences in long-term recovery.

Her research also examines mobile and digital health approaches to improve access to cognitive and physical rehabilitation, including home-based dual-task cognitive-walking interventions. Her broader scholarship extends to behavioral and mental health, adverse life experiences, behavioral health workforce development, and rural and community health, with an emphasis on translating research and innovation into accessible, community-responsive approaches to improving health.
Primary areas of expertise include:

• Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI)/concussion and cognitive health
• Digital health, mHealth, and digital biomarkers
• Biobehavioral and epigenetic mechanisms of health and recovery
• Psychiatric and behavioral health
• Behavioral health workforce development
• Rural and community health
• Interdisciplinary and community-engaged research
• Nursing research, evidence-based practice, and research capacity development

Classes Taught

Lee teaches and mentors students across the Ph.D., MSN, and BSN nursing programs.

At the doctoral level, she teaches Quantitative Research Methods in Nursing and Interdisciplinary Research & Scholarship Seminar, and previously taught Biobehavioral Approaches in Nursing Research and Biobehavioral Mechanisms, Pathways, and Measurements.

At the MSN level, her teaching has included Nursing Theory and Research, Family Theory and Health Promotion, and Informatics and Quality Improvement. At the undergraduate level, she has taught Evidence-Based Practice and Research in Nursing.

Lee also chairs and mentors Ph.D. and DNP students and works with undergraduate and graduate students across nursing and other disciplines. Her mentorship emphasizes interdisciplinary research, evidence-based practice, scholarly dissemination, and development of future nurse scientists and clinical scholars.

Education Background

Lee earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) and Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), both with honors, from Yonsei University in South Korea. As a graduating BSN student, she received the Sunwoo Award (선우상), a distinction recognizing academic excellence and leadership among graduating nursing students through faculty and peer selection.

She completed the Post-Master’s Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner program and earned her Ph.D. in Nursing from the University of Michigan. Following her doctoral education, Lee completed postdoctoral training in translational genomics at the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Division of Intramural Research, from 2010 to 2012.

Research or Scholarship

Lee leads the interdisciplinary Brain Injury Translational Research (BITR) program, which examines biobehavioral mechanisms underlying persistent symptoms and recovery following mTBI/concussion. Her work integrates cognitive, psychosocial, gait and balance, and eye-movement outcomes with peripheral epigenetic and digital biomarkers. Her recent research has also evaluated mobile health-delivered cognitive-physical interventions and the role of pre-injury adversity in mTBI recovery.

Her research and leadership portfolio has expanded to address behavioral health workforce development and rural and community health. Lee serves as co-program director of Bridge to Behavioral Health (B2H), a federally funded Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training initiative preparing psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner trainees to serve at-risk youth and families in underserved Nevada communities.

Lee also leads Nursing Outreach for Wellness (NOW) Nevada: Community Health Access Hubs Initiative for Rural Families, in collaboration with UNR Extension. The initiative focuses on strengthening rural families’ access to health education, preventive services, referral pathways, and community-based health resources.

Across these programs, her work emphasizes translation of nursing science and innovation into accessible, community-responsive approaches to improve health outcomes.

Awards, Recognitions, or Group Affiliations

Lee is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN). She currently serves as secretary of the Asian American/Pacific Islander Nurses Association (AAPINA) and is actively engaged in professional organizations and interdisciplinary initiatives advancing nursing science, behavioral health, and research capacity.
Her selected honors include the UNLV Top Tier Award (2023), the UNLV Faculty Top Tier Doctoral Graduate Research Assistantship Grant Program (2017, 2020, 2023), the UNLV School of Nursing Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research (2017, 2023), and the Nevada Nurses Foundation “Shining Stars of Nursing in Nevada: 50 Under 50” recognition (2021, 2023, 2024, 2025). She has also received university and professional recognition for her research, scholarship, mentorship, and interdisciplinary collaborations.