Dr. Vasquez is the co-founder of the Highland Training Institute,  Vice-President of the Center for Transformational Resilience, Inc., an Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Northern Iowa, and former trauma therapist. For the last 10 years, he has taught, conducted research, and provided consultation services on the effects of stress, trauma, innovative treatments, and trauma-informed care all over the country.

In his work, Dr. Vasquez strives to help educate others in understanding the complexities of trauma and its impact on individuals, families, and communities. He has won numerous teaching awards across multiple universities for his dynamic and innovative teaching style. His past research has focused on the effects of body and movement-based interventions (e.g., yoga, tai chi, KINNECT and Rainbowdance ®) on stress disorders and trauma, and the effects of chronic neglect and maladaptive caregiving on child mental health and development. His current area of focus is on integrating functional medicine in the treatment of trauma, long-term stress, and pain disorders. Dr. Vasquez has presented his research nationally, has been published in numerous academic journals, and featured on National Public Radio and in the Washington Post.

Dr. Vasquez currently provides training and consultation services on stress-mitigation and trauma-informed care practices across a variety of settings, including school districts, residential treatment centers, outpatient mental health practices, hospitals, child welfare agencies, first responder agencies (police, fire, EMS, and dispatch centers), non-profits, along with regional and national entities such as Texas Health and Human Services Commission, the Midwest Trauma Services Network, and the International Trauma Center.

Dr. Vasquez has developed an innovative, easy to learn, body-centered therapeutic approach to trauma treatment called Integrated Somatic Regulation ®, which incorporates the latest science regarding trauma and its effects on the brain and body, and utilizes elements from various body-centered practices, including body-based psychotherapy, EMDR, sensorimotor psychotherapy, yoga, and body-centered self-compassion approaches. It can be used to safely treat those who have experienced long-term, complex and developmental trauma. This approach developed through clinical practice with highly traumatized individuals, extensive review of the latest research, and collaboration with some of the top trauma experts in the field.

In his free time, Dr. Vasquez reading, bike riding, traveling, and touring and sampling the cuisine in New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast with his wife and two daughters.