Professor of Population and Family Health at the Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University in New York City. 

Prior to joining the Columbia faculty Dr. Aguirre-Molina held positions within foundations.  She served as the Executive Vice President of the California Endowment, and as a Senior Program Officer at The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.  Preceding her work within philanthropy she was an Associate Professor in the UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Department of Environmental and Community Medicine.  In this capacity she taught within the MD/MPH program and engaged in applied community-based public health research.  

The focus of Dr. Aguirre-Molina’s work is on program development and applied research that address public health approaches to the prevention of alcohol, tobacco and other high risk behaviors among young people.   She has published in this area of study. 

In addition to her interests in youth, she has worked extensively on Latino health policy issues, and access to care for Latinos and other underserved populations.  The Robert Wood Johnson commissioned a study and resulting monograph that she prepared entitled, Latinos’ Barriers to Primary and Preventive Services.  In addition, she edited (with C. Molina and R. Zambrana) a second book entitled, Health Issues in the Latino Community (2001), and more recently, Latina Health: A Public Health Reader (2003), both published by Jossey-Bass Publishers, Inc. 

At Columbia University she established and currently directs the Columbia University and Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo (UASD) Academic Exchange Program. She also serves as the Chair of the Admissions Committee, and directs the Department’s Fellowship Program.

Dr. Aguirre-Molina is a member of numerous national boards and committees. Among the boards and committees are the National Institutes of Health - National Advisory Council of the NIAAA, and  the NIAAA panel on College Drinking.  She recently served as a member of the Institute of Medicine panel that published the report on Reducing Underage Drinking - A Collective Responsibility. She was also elected to the Executive Board of the American Public Health Association.

As a Kellogg Foundation Fellow, Dr. Aguirre-Molina traveled extensively in Latin American, as well as Sweden and South Africa, where she studied the political economy of selected countries.

She currently serves as a consultant to The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and is a member of the selection panel of the Johnson & Johnson Community Health Care Program (corporate giving). 

Marilyn received a Bachelor of Science degree (cum laude) in Health Sciences from Hunter College - City University of New York.  In addition, she attended Columbia University were she received a Master of Science degree in Community Health and a Doctorate in Health Education and Administration. She is a native New Yorker.                                                                

(May 2004)