National Birth Justice Fellowship

2025 Fellowship Applications Are Now Closed 

About The National Birth Justice Fellowship 

The National Birth Justice Fellowship is a leadership program dedicated to advancing community-led efforts that promote birth equity and justice.  This 18-month fellowship is designed for local changemakers who are actively engaged in initiatives aimed at eliminating health inequities and injustices experienced by birthing families. The fellowship fosters culturally affirming, community-led solutions that reshape systems of health, education, and care, centering the dignity of all birthing families. 

The fellowship has two primary goals: first, for each participant to make significant progress on a key birth justice project through tailored support and by applying the skills and insights gained throughout the program; and second, for fellows to work collaboratively to co-create a resource that will advance the birth justice field as a whole.

This fellowship is suited for community changemakers who are:

• Committed to advancing community power to address birth equity.
• Engaged in strong, existing partnerships supporting birth justice initiatives.
• Experienced in birth justice work or service focused on addressing structural and social injustices affecting historically marginalized populations (BIPOC, immigrant, LGBTQ+ communities, and people with disabilities).
• Eager to learn new approaches and explore frameworks that foster sustainable, collective action for birth justice.
• Ready to engage deeply in an intensive fellowship to advance a key birth justice project they are leading and collaborate with peers to co-create a resource for the field.

Fellows receive a stipend, personalized support, mentorship and opportunities to expand their networks and scale their birth justice work.  The fellowship journey offers advanced learning around narrative change strategies, data storytelling and visualization, community engagement, building community power, and advocacy.  If you are passionate about driving systemic change for birthing families and committed to transforming leadership in birth justice, we strongly encourage you to apply.

Read the Request for Applications  

Read the Frequently Asked Questions  

How to Apply

Apply Here 

Nominate a Fellow

If you know of an outstanding candidate for this fellowship, you are encouraged to submit their nomination by completing this brief form.

Nominations are accepted but not required for consideration.

National Advisory Committee

The design of this fellowship program has been stewarded by advisors from across the nation, who bring diverse perspectives and deep expertise in birth equity, community advocacy, narrative change, participatory research, and health justice: 

• Ndidiamaka Amutah-Onukagha, Tufts University Center for Black Maternal Health and Reproductive Justice
• Michelle Browder, Mothers of Gynecology
• Femeika Elliott, The Lotus Program and Knoxville Black Maternal Health
• Raena Granberry, California Black Women’s Health Project
• Oluwatosin Goje, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University Women's Health Institute
• Alisha Julien-Reid, National Council of Indigenous Midwives
• Priya Iyer, Our Roots
• Sheela Maru, Mount Sinai, NYC Health and Hospitals-Elmhurst, HoPE Doula Program
• Ayesha McAdams-Mahmoud, Storied Light Consulting, Salesforce
• Rose Molina, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Ariadne Labs
• April Wallace, American Heart Association-Voices for Healthy Kids
• Jessica Houseman-Whitehawk, Ttawaxt Birth Justice Center

Stay Connected

Sign-up for email communications to receive regular updates regarding the fellowship program and adjacent opportunities.

Contact Information

Please contact us at birthingjustice@bmc.org with any questions.

This fellowship is supported by a grant from The Wagner Foundation