Dr. Maranda C. Ward is an Assistant Professor and Director of Equity in the Department of Clinical Research and Leadership in the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences. In this role, she designs, evaluates, and teaches health equity curriculum for student and faculty learners. Her teaching excellence was recognized in 2021 with the highest teaching honor at GW- the Morton A. Bender Teaching award. She is a member of the Academy of Distinguished Teaching as well as among the multi-disciplinary faculty within GW’s Trustworthy AI efforts. Dr. Ward is an expert in advancing anti-racism efforts within health professions education and in designing curricula to enable students and faculty to competently promote health and racial equity in practice. Her research focuses on diversity, equity, inclusion, justice and antiracism educational interventions as well as community-focused studies on HIV, Black women's health, and youth identity. 

As an affiliate faculty for the GW Honey W. Nashman Center for Civic Engagement and Public Service, she translated her participatory action research on youth identity into a youth-led canvas-based mural on preserving D.C. legacy. Dr. Ward's research is further converted into practice as the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Promising Futures - a youth development pipeline for D.C. youth ages 11-24 that integrates a social justice approach to positive youth development using edu-tainment to invite youth to explore their civic and social identities, social inequities, and health seeking behaviors. When she is not teaching or serving on-campus, she is engaged in DC in a range of capacities. For instance, she is on the board of trustees for the Washington School for Girls and the Douglass Community Land Trust. She also serves on the HealthHIV Advisory Board for Touch Points Viral Testing and Linkage to Care. She completed six years as an appointed advisory board member on the DC Mayor’s Commission on Health Equity.  She was also recently named the Associate Editor of the Journal of Health Equity.

When asked, she describes herself as a community educator, curriculum developer, and youth builder. She has strong commitments to service-learning, equity, community legacy, youth development, and honoring youth voice. Maranda earned the 2025 Ernest A. Lynton Award for Scholarship of Engagement by Campus Compact, 2024 American Public Health Association Sarah Mazelis Health Promotion Award, the 2024 Boston Congress of Public Health Global Health Innovators to Watch Award, 2024 GW School of Medicine Clara Bliss ‘Rising Star’ Mentoring Award, 2024 Dorothy Nyswander Health Equity award by the Society for Public Health Education, and the 2023 GW Black Alumni Impact award (the highest honor given to a Black alumni). She has been consulted by Ebony.com, Rolling Out Magazine, DCist, the Washington Post for her research on HIV disparities and featured on a live segment of Good Morning Washington, NPR’s Morning Edition and the KevinMD podcast for her health equity expertise. 

Maranda earned her Doctorate in Education from GW, her Master's in Public Health from Tulane University, and her Bachelor's degrees in Sociology and Anthropology from Spelman College. She enjoys learning from youth, traveling, and brunch.

For more information, visit www.marandaward.com