Michael Meit serves as Director of the East Tennessee State University Center for Rural Health Research (Center), and as Deputy Director for the HRSA-funded ETSU/NORC Rural Health Equity Research Center. The Center conducts studies on behalf of Ballad Health, Tennessee Department of Health, U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, Appalachian Regional Commission, and others, covering topics such as health equity and opioid misuse. Michael has experience working at the state and national levels, first with the Pennsylvania Department of Health and then with the National Association of County and City Health Officials. He served as founding director of the University of Pittsburgh Center for Rural Health Practice and Co-Director of the NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis. He serves on several national committees and multiple journal editorial and advisory boards. In 2019 Michael was named the National Rural Health Association’s Outstanding Researcher of the Year.