Rodolfo (Rudy) Arredondo, Ed.D.

Dr. Arredondo is a professor with a primary appointment to Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center’s Department of Neuropsychiatry and a secondary appointment to the Department of Health Organization Management. Dr. Arredondo is also the founder and Executive Director of the Southwest Institute for Addictive Diseases. Established in 1985, the Southwest Institute’s mission is to conduct research, teach and train medical students and residents, and to provide treatment services to the community.

Dr. Arredondo has devoted his career to teaching, training, treatment and research in mental health and substance abuse. Trained as a career teacher by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Dr. Arredondo has significant experience in planning, implementation, evaluation, and managing of mental health and substance abuse programs at local and state levels.

Dr. Arredondo’s record of public service is evidenced by prominent appointments at the state and national policy levels. Beginning in 1995, he was appointed by then Governor George W. Bush to serve on the Board of the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation (TDMHMR). He was reappointed by Governor Rick Perry for a second term and served as chairman until 2004, when the state reorganized the health and human services agencies. This reorganization established the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) which includes the legacy agencies of health, mental health and substance abuse. In 2005, Dr. Arredondo was appointed by Governor Perry to a five-year term to chair the Council of the Texas Department of State Health Services.

At the national level, during President George W. Bush’s first term, Dr. Arredondo was appointed to serve on the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health. The Commission presented a report to the President, making recommendations for the transformation of the Nation’s mental health system. Finally, Dr. Arredondo is serving a four-year term on the National Council of the NIH/National Institute on Drug Abuse as an appointee of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson.