Michelle Newhart is a lecturer in the Cannabis Studies Program and a faculty researcher in the Humboldt Institute for Interdisciplinary Marijuana Research (HIIMR) at Cal Poly Humboldt. Dr. Newhart earned her Bachelors, Masters, and Doctoral degrees in sociology, with a focus on the sociology of health, science and technology studies, and cultural sociology. Her current research focuses on medical cannabis use, midlife health, stigma, and identity. Other areas of interest include contested illnesses and health activism, science and technology studies, and women in cannabis industry. Her dissertation-turned-book on medical cannabis patients in Colorado, The Medicalization of Marijuana: Legitimacy, Stigma, and the Patient Experience (co-authored with William Dolphin) won the 2020 Donald W. Light Award for the Applied or Public Practice of Medical Sociology from the American Sociological Association. Newhart became interested in researching medical cannabis use after working as a book editor for Ed Rosenthal during his federal trial in the early days of California's state medical program. She traveled through Canada and Europe, interviewing cannabis breeders and advocates as laws began to liberalize around the world. She has edited or contributed to dozens of books on cannabis-related topics. She also became the revising author of a popular social science research methods textbook, Understanding Research Methods: An Overview of the Essentials since the 10th edition, and has authored multiple articles and book chapters on cannabis, stigma, menopause, and behavior related to environmental hazards. In addition, Newhart has worked as an instructional designer, teaching faculty to design high quality online courses. Dr. Newhart has taught at the University of Colorado at Boulder, Mt. San Antonio College, and the University of La Verne. She moderates a LinkedIn Group for researchers called Cannabis Researchers in the Social Sciences (CRITSS).