Mieko Smith has been a Professor of Social Work at the University of Akron since 2009. Prior to that, Mieko was Professor of Social Work at Cleveland State University (CSU) and directed the Biomedical and Health Institute for two years. She also conducted the evaluation of various programs, including the Healthy Eating and Active Living project implemented in Cleveland’s Ward One with the fund from the Kaiser Permanente and HIV/AIDS prevention programs.

Most recently Mieko evaluated the breast and cervical cancer prevention program for Vietnamese, Cambodian and Laotian women for the Asian Services In Action, Inc., which was presented at the American Public Health Association’s annual conference in 2010. She is also an evaluator of the Ohio Asian American Health Coalition’s Health Through Action project. Mieko has directed several major mental health research projects, including vocational rehabilitation research funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDDR) and a family strengthening program for families of children with severe emotional disturbances funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Her publications include two books in child mental health, and several journal articles and book chapters in mental health, family and children, and program evaluation. Mieko is an eleven-year breast cancer survivor and serves on federal cancer research grant review panels as a consumer reviewer.