Our Team

Executive Founding Director

  • Jacquelyn Y. Taylor, PhD, PNP-BC, RN, FAHA, FAAN

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Helen F. Pettit Professor of Nursing

    Founding Director, Center for Research on People of Color

    Founding Executive Director, Kathleen Hickey Endowed Lectureship

    Senior Advisor to Chief of Division of Cardiology, CUIMC

Affiliate Members

  • Suzanne B. Bakken, PhD, RN, FAAN, FACMI, FIAHSI

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Professor of Biomedical Informatics

    Alumni Professor of the School of Nursing

    Director, Center for Precision in Symptom Self-Management (PriSSM)

    Director, Reducing Health Disparities Through Informatics Training Program

    Vice Dean of Strategic & Innovative Research

  • Veronica Barcelona, PhD, MSN, RN, PHNA-BC, FAAN

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Assistant Professor of Nursing

    Headshot of Veronica Barcelona.
  • Enobong (Anna) Branch, PhD

    • Rutgers University

    Professor of Sociology

    Senior Vice President for Equity at Rutgers University 

  • Billy Caceres, PhD, MSN, RN

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Assistant Professor of Nursing

  • Aravinda Chakravarti, PhD

    • NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing

    Director, Center for Human Genetics and Genomics

    Professor, Institute for Systems Genetics

    Professor, Department of Medicine

    Muriel G. and George W. Singer Professor of Neuroscience and Physiology, Department of Neuroscience and Physiology

    Headshot of Aravinda Chakravarti.
  • Elizabeth J. Corwin, PhD, MSN, BS, BSN, FNP, FAAN

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Anna C. Maxwell Professor of Nursing Research

  • Waverly Duck, PhD

    • University of California, Santa Barbara

    Professor of Sociology

    North Hall Endowed Chair

  • Lorraine Frazier, PhD, RN, FAHA, FAAN

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Dean of Columbia University School of Nursing

    Mary O'Neil Mundinger Professor of Nursing

    Senior Vice President, Columbia University Irving Medical Center

  • Ervin Fox, MD, MPH, FAHA, FACC

    • The University of Mississippi Medical Center

    Professor of Medicine

    Cardiology Consult Rotation, Attending Physician

    Medical Director of the Clinical Noninvasive Laboratory

  • Amadou Gaye, PhD, MSc

    • Meharry Medical College

    Chair, Department of Integrative Genomics and Epidemiology

    Associate Professor

    Headshot of Amadou Gaye.
  • Tonda L. Hughes, PhD, RN, FAAN

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Henrik H. Bendixen Professor of International Nursing (in Psychiatry)

    Executive Director, Center for Sexual and Gender Minority Health Research

  • Paule V. Joseph, CRNP, MBA, Ph.D

    • National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

    Lasker Clinical Research Scholar Tenure Track Clinical Investigator

    Chief of the Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism (SenSMet) in Division of Intramural Clinical and Biological Research (DICBR)

    Headshot of Paule Joseph.
  • Eugenia Millender, PhD, RN, MS, PMHNP-BC, FAAN

    • Florida State University College of Nursing

    Assistant Dean for Research

    Marie Cowart Endowed Professor

    Co-Founder and Co-Director, Center of Population Sciences for Health Empowerment

    Visiting Professor at FSU Republic of Panama

    Chair, National Advisory Committee, American Nurses Association/Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Minority Fellowship Program

  • Marcella Nunez-Smith, MD, MHS

    • Yale School of Medicine

    C.N.H Long Professor of Internal Medicine (General Medicine) of Epidemiology (Chronic Diseases) and Public Health (Socail and Behavioral Science)

    Founding Director, Equity Research and Innovation Center (ERIC)

    Director, Center for Research Engagement (CRE)

    Director, Center for Community Engagement and Health Equity

    Deputy Director, for Health Equity Research and Workplace Development, Yale Center for Clinical Investigation

    Director, Pozen-Commwealth Fund Fellowship in Health Equity Leadership

    Headshot of Marcella Nunez-Smith.
  • Olugbenda Ogedegbe, MD, MPH

    • New York University School of Global Public Health

    Professor of Population Health & Medicine

    Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences

    Chief Division of Health & Behavior

    Director Center for Healthful Behavior Change in the Department of Population Health at the School of Medicine

  • Meghan Reading Turchioe, PhD, MPH, RN, FAHA

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Assistant Professor of Nursing

    Profile Photo of Meghan Reading Turchioe
  • Daichi Shimbo, MD

    • Columbia University Department of Medicine

    Senior Vice-President and Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs

    Co-Director, Columbia Hypertension Center

    Director, Translational Lab at Columbia

    Director, Cardiovascular Physiology Research, Cardiovascular Ultrasound, Laboratories, Division of Cardiology

    Director, TRANSFORM (TRaining And Nurturing Scholars FOr Research that is Multidisciplinary)

    Associate Dean of Research Career Development

  • Patricia W. Stone, PhD, MPH, MSN, BSN, FAAN, FAPIC

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Centennial Professor of Health Policy in the Faculty of Nursing

    Director, Center for Health Policy

  • Yan V. Sun, PhD, MS

    • Emory University Rollins School of Public Health

    Associate Professor of Epidemiology

    Director of the Genetic and Molecular Epidemiology (GME) Certificate Program

    Headshot of Yan Sun.
  • Vivian Taylor, EdD

    • Columbia University School of Nursing

    Associate Dean for Diversity and Cultural Affairs

  • Milla Arabadjian, PhD, FNP-BC, RN

    • NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine

    Assistant Professor, Department of Foundations of Medicine

Support Staff

  • Laura Prescott, MA

    • Project Director
  • Stephanie Potts-Thompson, MPH

    • Research Coordinator
  • Morgan Morrison, MA

    • Research Associate
  • Erica Matute-Arcos

    • Research Associate