Academic Director
About
Lisa Harris, MD, PhD, is the F. Wallace and Janet Jeffries Collegiate Professor of Reproductive Health, and Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the Department of Women's and Gender Studies at the University of Michigan. She is Associate Chair for Faculty Development and Faculty Life in Ob-Gyn, and directs University of Michigan's Fellowship in Family Planning. After college and medical school at Harvard University, she completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at University of California, San Francisco. Because so many issues in reproductive health have to do as much with culture and politics as with biomedical sciences, she went on to earn a PhD in American Culture at University of Michigan. She is now an active clinician, teacher and researcher. Her clinical work includes most aspects of general obstetrics and gynecology care, with a focus on miscarriage and family planning. She teaches across disciplines at University of Michigan, and has co-taught Women’s and Gender Studies 400 (Women’s Reproductive Health) for the past 15 years. In addition to undergraduate teaching, she teaches in the Medical School, Law School and School of Public Health. Her research is similarly interdisciplinary, focusing on medical history and sociology. In particular her work explores abortion stigma, the experiences of abortion care providers, race and social class stratification of reproduction, strategies for providing healthcare within a reproductive justice framework, and the role of healthcare provider voices in reducing social polarization on contested issues. She is the recipient of a variety of awards for her research and advocacy, including the Association of Reproductive Health Professional's "Preserving Core Values in Science Award,” and the Outstanding Researcher Award from the Society of Family Planning.
