Dr. Shalon’s Maternal Action Project Announces the Appointment of Dr. Ndidiamaka Amutah-Onukagha to Its Board of Directors

 Dr. Shalon’s Maternal Action Project (DSMAP), a national leader in maternal health, is pleased to announce the appointment of Ndidiamaka Amutah-Onukagha, PhD, MPH, CHES to its Board of Directors.

“I am ecstatic that Dr. Ndidi is joining our team. I met her several years ago through my daughter and have watched her star rise. She is an amazing woman, and we are so grateful to have her join our board. We see her as a guiding light to the next level for our organization,” said Wanda Irving, Co-Founder and Chairman of the Board.

Dr. Amutah-Onukagha has over a decade of maternal health and public health expertise that will be utilized to enhance the mission, goals, and values of DSMAP. She received her Bachelor of Science in Public Health and BA in Africana Studies from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and her Master of Public Health from The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services in Maternal and Child Health in 2005. Dr. Amutah-Onukagha earned her Ph.D. in Public Health with a focus in Maternal and Child Health from the University of Maryland, College Park School of Public Health in 2010.

Dr. Amutah-Onukagha is currently an Associate Professor at Tufts University in the School of Medicine. In this capacity, her research focuses on health equity, health disparities, adverse birth outcomes, and HIV/AIDS in women of color. In addition to her academic work, she is the President and Founder of Amaka Consulting and Evaluation Services, LLC (ACES), a minority and woman-owned public health research and evaluation firm.

“I am honored and excited to join the board of Dr. Shalon’s MAP. As a friend and colleague of Dr. Shalon, this is a full circle moment. In my work as a maternal health scholar, I aim to uplift and center the lived experiences of Black women who are disproportionately impacted by the maternal health crisis in the United States. We are in a dual pandemic of COVID and racism and there is much work to be done! I’m a mom myself and the work of DSMAP is critical, timely, and much needed. I look forward to serving along the other great women that are doing incredible work in this space,” said Dr. Amutah-Onukagha.

The mission of Dr. Shalon’s Maternal Action Project is to increase awareness of the Black maternal health crisis and develop and promote evidence-based strategies that improve health outcomes for Black birthing people and families.