Dr. Sonja Harris-Haywood, appointed Dean of Meharry Medical College School of Medicine in August 2023, is dedicated to advancing medical education and healthcare access for underserved communities. Prior to this, she was Associate Dean of Curriculum Integration at NEOMED College of Medicine, leading a curriculum transformation to integrate medical sciences with clinical practice. Her career at NEOMED began in 2010 when she joined as Senior Associate Dean and Director of the NEOMED-CSU “Partnership” for Urban Health and Primary Care, aiming to recruit and train minority physicians for underserved areas.

Before joining NEOMED, Dr. Harris-Haywood was an Assistant Professor at Case School of Medicine’s Department of Family Medicine. There, she led NIH-funded research on cultural competence and doctor-patient communication, developing tools to assess culturally competent care and its impact on patient outcomes.

Dr. Harris-Haywood earned her BS in chemistry from Seton Hall University in 1986 and began her career in cancer research at Lederle Laboratories. After completing her medical degree at UMDNJ Medical School in 1997, she pursued a family medicine residency and later engaged in research fellowships at UNC Chapel Hill and UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, where she deepened her focus on reducing healthcare disparities through culturally competent care.

Dr. Harris-Haywood serves on several boards and mentors students and professionals. She is married to Dr. Morris T. Haywood, a proud mother of three.