Sharla Smith, Ph.D., MPH, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Health and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Kansas City. Her current research focuses on maternal and infant health disparities. Smith is co-founder of Kansas Sisters and Brothers for Healthy Infants, and founder and director of the Kansas Birth Equity Network. She has experience teaching public health policy and law, public health interventions and other health policy courses. She holds a Doctoral degree in Health Systems and Services Research with a concentration in Health Economics, a Master of Public Health degree in Health Policy and Management, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. She resides in Wyandotte County, KS.