About Dr. Marissa Robinson
Strategic. Purposeful. Rooted in Community.
Dr. Marissa Robinson, DrPH, MPH, is a nationally recognized public health executive, infectious disease epidemiologist, educator, and strategist whose work bridges research, policy, community engagement, and practice.
Her career has taken her from community health work in West Africa to federal public health leadership in Washington, D.C., with a particular focus on HIV and sexual health, infectious diseases, health equity, and the communities most impacted by health inequities. Across each chapter, Dr. Robinson has remained grounded in a simple belief: the people closest to public health challenges should have a meaningful role in shaping the solutions.
Her Story
Dr. Robinson’s public health journey has taken her through many spaces, but some of its most formative lessons came thousands of miles from home.
As a Peace Corps Volunteer in Togo, West Africa, she worked alongside communities on health education, malaria prevention, and locally driven approaches to improving health. The experience reinforced something that has remained central to her work ever since: meaningful public health solutions begin with listening, relationships, and an understanding of the communities they are intended to serve.
That foundation has followed Dr. Robinson throughout a career spanning academic medicine, clinical and community-based research, national public health organizations, federal service, health policy, and academia. From Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Morehouse School of Medicine to the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, CDC, HRSA, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, she has carried those lessons into increasingly complex public health challenges.
Today, those experiences continue to shape how Dr. Robinson approaches leadership, research, teaching, and the work of Real Health Impact: listen first, connect evidence with practice, bring the right people to the table, and build solutions that make sense in the real world.
My Values
At the core of everything she does is a deep belief in:
Health equity as a non-negotiable
Community voice as essential
Lived experience as expertise
Evidence in conversation with experience
Leadership rooted in accountability & action
Mentorship & Teaching
Dr. Robinson is an educator and mentor committed to preparing the next generation of public health leaders. As Adjunct Professor at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, she brings real-world experience in public health leadership, social change, collective impact, and community engagement into the classroom.
Beyond academia, she has mentored and supported hundreds of emerging public health professionals as they navigate their careers, strengthen their leadership, and find their own voice in the field. Across the classroom, mentorship, and professional development spaces, her approach is grounded in helping others recognize the expertise and power they already bring to the table.
"You don’t have to wait to be empowered, you can choose to move in your power right now."
Outside the Office
When she’s not advancing public health strategy or mentoring the next generation of public health leaders, you can find Dr. Robinson dancing her heart out as a certified Zumba & Line Dance Instructor, exploring wellness practices, or listening to her favorite podcasts. Movement, joy, and balance are just as important to her as the work itself.
Let’s Build Together
Whether you’re looking to collaborate, bring Dr. Robinson into an upcoming conversation, or explore how RHI can support your work, there’s a place to start.
