Dollar Ganu, M.S.

About Dollar

Dollar Ganu holds a Master of Science in Couples and Family Therapy from the University of Oregon and is also a practicing Marriage and Family Therapist Associate. Originally from the Seattle-Tacoma region of Washington, she is a member of the CREAR Lab and hopes to pursue a PhD in psychology.

Her research focuses on decreasing health inequities faced by marginalized communities. She is particularly interested in understanding the mechanisms that contribute to substance use and identifying when these mechanisms act as protective or risk factors to inform prevention and intervention programs.

Dollar has experience researching immigrant mental health outcomes, belonging, substance use, depression, epilepsy, and mental health inequities. She values the work of the CREAR Lab because it centers marginalized communities through a strengths-based and culturally grounded approach.

Research Involvement

• Mental health inequities among marginalized and immigrant communities
• Mechanisms contributing to substance use and their role as risk or protective factors
• Research on belonging, community support, and well-being
• Psychological and neurobiological processes in depression and epilepsy

Selected Papers

• Ganu, D., Starks, B., Davila, S. A., & Medrano, A. S. (in press). Campus climate and the mental health of college student caregivers: The mediating role of group belonging. Journal of College Student Development.
• Allemeier, A. M., Drummond, C., Tiefenthaler, B., Dvorak, T. C., Holza, F. M., Hume, C., Kreger, R. B., Koulibali, C. I., Khan, H. A., Best, A. L., Gee, T., Pedersen, G. D., Glover, K., Ganu, D., Martina, J., Hill, M., & Epps, S. A. (2025). Endocannabinoid involvement in beneficial effects of caloric restriction in a rodent model of comorbid depression and epilepsy. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry.

Selected Presentations

• Muruthi, B. A., Ganu, D., Fitzgerald, F., Abulainain, R., McRell, A. S., & Sihlongonyane, B. (2025, October). Family navigators as bridges to mental healthcare: Supporting Black immigrant communities. Council for Social Work Education, Denver, CO.
• Muruthi, B. A., Zarate, J., McRell, A. S., Ganu, D., Sihlongonyane, B., & Tettevie, F. L. (2025, October). Undocu-Black: Considerations of critical race theory and mental health for undocumented Black migrants. Council for Social Work Education, Denver, CO.
• Ganu, D., & Lkhadorj, T. (2023, April). Be here or belong? International and racial minority American students’ sense of belonging compared to white American students. Spokane Intercollegiate Research Conference, Spokane, WA.