Meet The Team
M. Andrea Taylor, Ph.D., MBA, MPH
CEO + Executive Director
M. Andrea Taylor PhD, MPH, MBA, is the Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Executive Director of the EquiThrive Institute, a national nonprofit advancing health education and social mobility through data-driven, community-centered strategies. A senior healthcare executive and population health scientist, Dr. Taylor brings more than a decade of leadership experience across NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers, academic medical centers, federal public health agencies, and large health systems.
Dr. Taylor currently serves in executive leadership within academic medicine, where she leads enterprise-level organizational excellence, workforce strategy, and culture transformation efforts impacting hundreds of physicians, researchers, and staff across multi-hospital systems. Her work spans operations, workforce planning, leadership development, performance improvement, and large-scale change management in complex clinical and research environments. She has advised executive leadership on strategy and compliance tied to national accreditation and federal funding requirements, including NIH and NCI initiatives.
Previously, Dr. Taylor held national leadership roles at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where she led health equity–focused cancer prevention efforts, contributed to the CDC Health Equity Style Guide, supported the COVID-19 Health Equity Strategy, and advised on communications and reporting for senior federal audiences, including Congress and the White House. She has also held senior leadership and consulting roles with Yale New Haven Health, Yale School of Medicine, Columbia University, and state health agencies, directing multi-million-dollar portfolios and building sustainable, equity-centered programs at scale.
Through the EquiThrive Institute, Dr. Taylor is leveraging this deep executive, academic, and federal experience to translate data into action—bridging health education and economic opportunity, strengthening community capacity, and advancing long-term wellness, particularly across cancer prevention, survivorship, and health literacy. Her leadership reflects a disciplined, systems-oriented approach to building institutions and initiatives that deliver measurable, lasting impact.
Dr. Taylor currently serves in executive leadership within academic medicine, where she leads enterprise-level organizational excellence, workforce strategy, and culture transformation efforts impacting hundreds of physicians, researchers, and staff across multi-hospital systems. Her work spans operations, workforce planning, leadership development, performance improvement, and large-scale change management in complex clinical and research environments. She has advised executive leadership on strategy and compliance tied to national accreditation and federal funding requirements, including NIH and NCI initiatives.
Previously, Dr. Taylor held national leadership roles at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where she led health equity–focused cancer prevention efforts, contributed to the CDC Health Equity Style Guide, supported the COVID-19 Health Equity Strategy, and advised on communications and reporting for senior federal audiences, including Congress and the White House. She has also held senior leadership and consulting roles with Yale New Haven Health, Yale School of Medicine, Columbia University, and state health agencies, directing multi-million-dollar portfolios and building sustainable, equity-centered programs at scale.
Through the EquiThrive Institute, Dr. Taylor is leveraging this deep executive, academic, and federal experience to translate data into action—bridging health education and economic opportunity, strengthening community capacity, and advancing long-term wellness, particularly across cancer prevention, survivorship, and health literacy. Her leadership reflects a disciplined, systems-oriented approach to building institutions and initiatives that deliver measurable, lasting impact.
RaQuaam Smith, MAT, P.H.D Candidate
COO + Executive Vice President
RaQuaam Smith, M.A.T., Ph.D. Candidate, is the Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of The EquiThrive Institute, where he leads strategy, operations, partnerships, and systems design to advance health literacy and economic mobility. He is an accomplished equity-oriented leader known for translating data into action—building culturally responsive systems that increase graduation outcomes, reduce disproportionality, and expand access to opportunity.
Before joining EquiThrive’s executive leadership, RaQuaam served as Senior Lead/Lead Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) and Technical Assistance Specialist for Graduation & Dropout at the National Technical Assistance Center on Transitions: The Collaborative (NTACT:C). In that role, he designed and implemented six data-driven technical assistance programs for state education and vocational rehabilitation agencies, helping reduce chronic absenteeism and improve attendance while driving policy reforms that expanded graduation initiatives for vulnerable populations. He also led a national campaign to identify and re-engage secondary students with disabilities, strengthening culturally responsive dropout-prevention efforts.
RaQuaam’s leadership foundation includes building partnerships and workforce development strategies that improve job placements and strengthen education-to-career pathways. He brings frontline experience as a program director and educator, paired with research and publication work focused on school completion and mobility for Black youth with disabilities.
Before joining EquiThrive’s executive leadership, RaQuaam served as Senior Lead/Lead Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) and Technical Assistance Specialist for Graduation & Dropout at the National Technical Assistance Center on Transitions: The Collaborative (NTACT:C). In that role, he designed and implemented six data-driven technical assistance programs for state education and vocational rehabilitation agencies, helping reduce chronic absenteeism and improve attendance while driving policy reforms that expanded graduation initiatives for vulnerable populations. He also led a national campaign to identify and re-engage secondary students with disabilities, strengthening culturally responsive dropout-prevention efforts.
RaQuaam’s leadership foundation includes building partnerships and workforce development strategies that improve job placements and strengthen education-to-career pathways. He brings frontline experience as a program director and educator, paired with research and publication work focused on school completion and mobility for Black youth with disabilities.