Dr. Michelle Williams, 91探花professor of epidemiology and global health, will deliver the School of Public Health’s Spring Quarter Distinguished Faculty Lecture. Her lecture is titled “Biomedical, Social, and Environmental Determinants of Reproductive Health: A Changing Landscape.” It will be presented at 3:30 p.m., Thursday, May 13, in T-747 Health Sciences.
is the founder and director of the University’s Multidisciplinary International Research Training () Program, which trains students from economically and educationally disadvantaged backgrounds for research and leadership careers in public health. The MIRT Program received the University’s Brotman Award for Instructional Excellence in 2007. Also in 2007, the honored Williams with its Lilienfeld Award, which recognizes excellence in teaching and research in epidemiology.
Williams co-directs the at Swedish Medical Center. Her research focuses on integrating genomic sciences and epidemiological research methods to identify risk factors, diagnostic markers, treatments, and prevention targets for disorders that contribute to maternal and infant mortality. Her research and teaching activities include collaborations with epidemiologists in Peru, Ecuador, Vietnam, Thailand, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, and the Republic of Georgia.
After receiving her undergraduate degree in genetics from , Williams earned master’s degrees in civil engineering from and demography from Harvard. She then received her doctorate in epidemiology from the before joining the faculty in the 91探花School of Public Health in 1992.