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About Us — FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Have a question? We are here to help.
About the Center
Our Work & Mission
The Center for Maternal Health Advancement is based at Tufts University School of Medicine. It was founded in April 2022 by Dr. Ndidiamaka Amutah-Onukagha as the Center for Black Maternal Health & Reproductive Justice. Our mission is to advance equitable maternal health outcomes for mothers confronting barriers to care.
We work across six areas: the MOTHER Lab, Research & Policy, Community Engagement, Innovation & Education, Data, Strategy & Impact, and Black Maternal Health Leadership.
Same Center, same team, same leadership — a broader scope. The Center for Black Maternal Health & Reproductive Justice became the Center for Maternal Health Advancement to reflect the full range of work already underway.
Our foundation remains rooted in Black maternal health and reproductive justice. What changed is that our work now also names the mothers who face overlapping barriers — economic instability, language access, structural racism, chronic stress, and limited access to consistent care.
MOTHER stands for Maternal Outcomes for Translational Health Equity Research. It is the Center’s student-driven research and leadership community, engaging students, alumni, and volunteers in advancing maternal health equity through research, learning, advocacy, and public engagement.
We are based at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts, in the Department of Public Health & Community Medicine.
Center for Maternal Health Advancement200 Harrison Avenue
Posner Hall
Boston, MA 02111
About the rebrand
Name & Identity
Years of work in Black maternal health have built deep credibility. That progress lets us address a broader truth: maternal health outcomes are shaped long before pregnancy and long after childbirth — by access to preventive care, chronic disease management, reproductive autonomy, and postpartum support across a woman’s entire lifespan.
Expanding our scope lets us tackle these interconnected challenges while keeping Black maternal health central.
Absolutely not. Black maternal health remains a cornerstone of our mission.
The new name reflects continuity plus expansion — elevating Black maternal health within a wider maternal health movement instead of keeping it siloed.
No. Reframing our work within maternal health strengthens our ability to highlight and address the inequities Black women face. It positions Black maternal health within the broader conversation around lifespan-based risk, access, and outcomes.
Our programs, research, and advocacy continue with the same urgency, and our logo and visual identity stay the same. What expands is our lens — incorporating how structural inequities, chronic stress, bias in healthcare, and limited resources across the lifespan affect maternal health for Black women and other marginalized groups.
Getting involved
Participate & Support
There are many ways to support the Center for Maternal Health Advancement. Individuals and organizations can support our work through donations, sponsorships, partnerships, event participation, and engagement with our research and community initiatives.
Your support helps us expand research, create meaningful educational and community programming, support emerging leaders, and advance efforts to improve maternal health.
Ways to give and get involved, or donate directly (opens the Tufts giving portal in a new tab).
The MOTHER Lab brings together students, public health professionals and practitioners, and volunteers across four committees — Research & Grants, Community Engagement, Advocacy & Policy, Marketing, Communications & Events, and the Sunshine Committee.
[Tell us you’re interested] — complete the interest form and someone from the Lab will be in touch about current openings and which committee fits.
You can also read more about the Lab and its committees first.
Registration for the Center’s Annual Conference opens in advance of each year’s event. The conference brings together researchers, practitioners, advocates, students, community leaders, and families for conversations focused on Black maternal health, reproductive justice, research, policy, and community-driven solutions.
When registration opens, information about conference dates, programming, speakers, registration fees, and attendance options will be available on our Annual Conference page.
Yes. We welcome opportunities to partner with organizations that share our commitment to advancing maternal health.
Partnership opportunities may include research collaborations, conference and event sponsorships, community programming, educational initiatives, and other mission-aligned projects. We work with academic institutions, community-based organizations, nonprofits, healthcare organizations, foundations, corporations, and other partners.
If your organization is interested in working with the Center, we invite you to connect with our team to explore opportunities for collaboration — email blackmaternalhealth@tufts.edu or use our contact page.
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