Holly Lynn Chapman

Project focus: The Fellow will study the role of scientists in federal policymaking, explore the history of U.S. science policy institutions, and develop scholarship to improve the governance of American research and innovation.

For over a decade, Holly Chapman has been active in STEM educational initiatives, including co-founding a community education organization providing free training on opioid overdose, pharmacology, harm reduction, policy, and bystander response. She has also received two Research!America Civic Engagement Microgrants for STEM education (2021) and substance use disorder education (2023), supporting primary, secondary, and general education audiences to make complex science accessible and actionable. Her interest in policy led Holly to Washington, D.C., in 2025 as Graduate Archer Policy Fellow, where she interned with Georgetown Law’s O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law, Center on Addiction and Public Policy. There, she contributed to policy research on substance use, HIV prevention, and public health. Holly holds a Ph.D. in translational medicine from The University of Texas Medical Branch, an M.S. in behavioral neuroscience from the University of Houston–Clear Lake, and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from The University of Texas at Austin. Her dissertation work studied factors associated with vulnerability to mental health disorders and developed community-based approaches to translate addiction science into practical knowledge.