Academic Partners
Hilary K. Brown, PhD
Assistant Professor
Maternal and child health and mental health across the life course, with a focus on populations with disabilities and chronic disease, health equity, and the social determinants of health.
416-208-2239
Élyse Caron-Beaudoin, PhD
Assistant Professor
Participatory research on environmental factors and health.
647-601-4641
Notisha Massaquoi, PhD
Assistant Professor
Community-based health research with Black communities to develop advocacy tools, strategies and programs to improve health outcomes, wellbeing and success in Canadian systems.
647-601-4684
BIOGRAPHY Dr. Notisha Massaquoi is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health and Society at the University of Toronto with a graduate appointment in the Factor Inwentash Faculty of Social Work. She is also the founder and director of the Black Health Equity Lab (The BHEL) which conducts community-based health research and works with Black communities to develop advocacy tools, strategies and programs to improve health outcomes, wellbeing and success in Canadian systems. She holds a BA in Psychology from Western University and MSW and PhD from The University of Toronto. Her early career established several health service organizations which serve Black communities in Canada such as TAIBU Community Health Centre and Africans in Partnership Against AIDS. She developed and served for two decades as the Executive Director of Women's Health in Women's Hands Community Health Centre in Toronto – the only Community Health Centre in North America which provides specialized primary healthcare for Black and racialized women
Amira Aker, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Environmental health, reproductive health, epidemiology, public health, global health, research.
Email preferred contact
Nakia Lee-Foon, PhD
Research Associate
Public health researcher with a focus on health equity, sexual health literacy among young Black gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, racism and health, and the social determinants of health.
Email preferred contact
Muna Aden, MPH
Health Equity Advocate
Community-based health research with Black communities.
Email preferred contact
Savitri Persaud, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Health equity and community-based mental health research in the Caribbean and among Caribbean diasporas.
Co-edited special issue of the Caribbean Review of Gender Studies on “Disability, Mental Health, and Disablement”.
Email preferred contact