Udodiri R. Okwandu, PhD (she/her)
@udodiriokwandu
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Harvard-trained historian of science & medicine | researching & writing on the history of race and maternal mental illness
Massachusetts, USA
Joined July 2020
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Life Update 🥳: I am thrilled to share that I earned my PhD in the History of Science from Harvard University in May 2024! This milestone would not have been possible without the endless encouragement and support of my committee and loved ones!
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Today I was awarded the 2022 Derek C. Bok Award for Excellence in Graduate Teaching of Undergraduates by
@HarvardGSAS
. Thank you to my mentors for their support and my students who have not only made me a better teacher, but also a better person 🤍
#Histmed
#blackhistorians
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My dissertation examines how racialized constructions of motherhood shaped the classification, diagnosis, and treatment of maternal mental illness, thus (re)producing the American sociocultural ideal of a mother who is white, middle-class, and domestic in the 19th/20th centuries.
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In my first article for
@nursingclio
, I explore how systemic racism and classic underlie abysmal maternal morbidity and mortality rates in Texas and it’s disproportionate effects on Black and low-income childbearing people. Check it out!
Today, Udodiri Okwandu contextualizes the Texas Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Report. Unsurprising to historian of race and medicine Okwandu, the statistics contained within it tell a tragic story of American motherhood - especially for Black mothers.
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I had a fantastic time at
#AAHM22
. It was truly an honor to be surrounded by a vibrant, kind, and passionate community of scholars. Feeling so motivated and energized! Thank you
@aahmhistmed
!
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In my latest essay for
@nursingclio
, I explore the racialization of uterine fibroids in the late 19th century — and its ongoing impact — through an archival encounter that profoundly moved me. Check it out:
A beautiful essay about what a case study of uterine fibroids from the 1890s can teach us today, particularly during Fibroid Awareness Month, from
@udodiriokwandu
for
@nursingclio
.
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I had a fantastic time at
@uniofwarwick
presenting my research at the “Women, Reproduction, and Mental Illness in the ‘Long’ 20th Century” workshop hosted by
@LTOMhistory
& Prof. Hilary Marland. Feeling sentimental as this was my last workshop/conference as a graduate student 🥹
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Sad to be leaving
#AAHM2023
early but grateful to have had a fantastic time in community with a lovely group of scholars 🤩
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Still buzzing after listening to Prof.
@DorothyERoberts
’ urgent and critical lecture titled “How the Supreme Court Devalues Reproductive Freedom - and the Urgency of Reproductive Justice” yesterday evening. It’s also not everyday you get to talk to one of your academic heroes!🤩
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The National Museum for African American History is hiring a curator in African American STEM, History of Science and Technology, and History of Medicine. Check it out!
#blackhistorians
#histmed
#histsci
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I had a fantastic weekend at the Gender & Intersectionality in Science, Technology, & Medicine conference at the University of Granada in Spain! I presented on a panel titled “Science, Family, & Citizenship in 20thc America” and listened to many fantastic presentations 🤩
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I can’t wait to continue developing my scholarship and teaching in the future. More exciting news coming soon!
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I am so incredibly proud of my dear friend Dr. Patrick Emedom-Nnamdi (
@patemedom
) for successfully defending his dissertation today.
Patrick and I met 5 years ago during
@HarvardGSAS
admitted students weekend. What a joy it has been to witness your journey! Congratulations 🥳
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I am incredibly grateful to have spent the week at
@UBuffalo
as a VITAL scholar. Special thank you to
@UB_History
,
@dhbuffalo
, and
@ParisNoire
for hosting me and to
@elizabethbphd
,
@CliftonESorrell
,
@CulturedModesty
, and
@BlkDiaspoRican
for being the best cohort ever!
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First day of
#AHA23
off to a great start! Had the pleasure of presenting on a panel titled “The Past is Kid Stuff: The Child in American Thought and History” alongside my dear friend and colleague
@mchaelortz
!
@AHAhistorians
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It was a pleasure to give a flash talk on my dissertation at the 94th annual meeting of the American Association for the History of Medicine! It has been a great conference thus far!
@aahmhistmed
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thrilled to be here 🤗
🎉The Dept. of History is pleased to welcome 2022 VITAL Scholars: Elizabeth Barahona (
@elizabethbphd
), Adam McNeil (
@CulturedModesty
), Daniel Morales-Armstrong, Udodiri R. Okwandu (
@udodiriokwandu
), and Clifton E. Sorrell III (
@CliftonESorrell
)!
#ubuffalo
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~the deep satisfaction of finding an archival document that you were told didn’t exist~
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I am thrilled to share that I've been named a
@ctzns_schlrs
2023 Women's Studies Fellow. I am grateful to be among these outstanding scholars expanding perspectives on women's and gender issues!
#CSFellow
C&S is pleased to announce the selection of eight Dissertation Fellows in Women’s Studies for 2023. Fellows come from a range of institutions and are completing dissertations in fields such as sociomedical sciences, English, and history. ⤵
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This weekend, I attended the HSS annual meeting for the first time. I also presented on a panel titled “Naming Stakes: Critical Histories of Classification and Categorization” — alongside
@beansvelocci
,
@HashmiZehra
, and Miriam Rich! Thank you
@hssonline
for an amazing program!
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A lovely surprise came in the mail today 😍 thank you for sending me a copy
@ParisNoire
— I am excited to dive in!
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If you find yourself in New Orleans (as I did!) you must visit Studio Be. This visual art project - housed in a 35,000 sq ft warehouse and pioneered by local artist Brandan Odums - depicts the stories of revolutionaries, heroes, & New Orleanian locals & celebrates Black culture🦋
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Spent my last day in London at the Wellcome Collection
@ExploreWellcome
! My favorite exhibit was “Milk” which explored the social, political, cultural, and racial history of milk through historical objects and artistic works.
And, yes, I was nerding out 🤩
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finally beginning the research for my next dissertation chapter. let the chaos and angst ensue 🥹
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It was a pleasure to serve as a guest lecturer in Dr. Orna Ophir's course "The History of Madness"
@nyuniversity
today. I discussed the biomedicalization of urban rioting & protest in the 60s & how these discourses depoliticized the Civil Rights Movement & upheld white supremacy
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Back home after a fantastic week in Montreal! It was a pleasure to present at the “On Being Sane in Insane Places” research colloquium
@mcgillu
and listen to and learn from an incredible group of scholars doing innovative work. Exploring the city was also a plus 🤩
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This weekend, I had the pleasure of attending and presenting at the
@ASALH
conference for the first time. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to be in community with a dynamic and passionate group of scholars in Montgomery, Alabama. Until next time!
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feeling very very grateful for my health today after a rough several days dealing with covid
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Yesterday I presented at “All in Your Head: Reviewing the History of the Mind through Approaches, Classifications, and Objects” at KU Leuven!
Thank you
@M_F_Gonzalez_R
for the invitation & my fellow presenters and attendees for their participation. Belgium, I’ll be back! 🤩
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I’m so excited to be part of this program alongside amazing scholars! I’ll be presenting on race and the classification of maternal mental illness in late 19th/early 20th century America.
📣🧠SAVE THE DATE. 20 April. 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙙:
𝙍𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝘼𝙥𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙨, 𝘾𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙊𝙗𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙨,a hybrid seminar at KU Leuven, info at:
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Happy to share that my sister - Dr. Ijeoma Okwandu - has had her article "Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Cesarean Delivery and Indications Among Nulliparous, Term, Singleton, Vertex Women" published in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities!
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My amazing sister, Dr. Ijeoma Okwandu (
@Ijeoma_MD
), and Dr. Kimeshia Thomas have launched a new podcast called "The Birth Squad". Together, they use the power of storytelling to explore the pregnancy and birth experiences of real people. Listen here:
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Thrilled to be a speaker for the 24th Annual Campus and Community Dialogue on Race
@humboldtcalpoly
this week alongside
@MisterMinor
,
@Jiggy_Yoon
, and
@sweetlikesaul
. This year's theme is "Truth Telling for Liberation".
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Personal news: I’ve been accepted into the
@NLC
(Boston) 2022 cohort. I can’t wait to join hundreds of Fellows across the U.S. for this leadership experience. We’ll center our communities and dig-in to advancing equity.
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Spent the day connecting with fellow Black academics and creatives and my heart is so full! 🥰
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@AJohnsonHist
@byeliseam
@CulturedModesty
@AyahNerd
@tropigalia
@DrMonreaux
@Ezellesanford3
@GeorgeAumoithe
I am a historian of race and medicine in the US, with a special focus on the histories of psychiatry and reproductive health. My current work examines the racialization of postpartum mental health disorders. I’m tagging
@CliftonESorrell
@BlkDiaspoRican
@mistersmiiles
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I had the privilege of seeing Simone Leigh’s breathtaking exhibition
@ICAinBOSTON
. Her work focuses on exploring Black female subjectivity and centers Black femmes’ experiences and intellectual labor that are often unacknowledged. Check it out before September 4th!
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Thank you so much for sharing my presentation
@ProfSMGibson
. I’m so happy you found it useful! 😊
#globalpublichealth
#teachingtool
alert!
@udodiriokwandu
of
@Harvard
offers a overview of the complex historical relationship between medicine and racism, all the way up to today's Covid-19 crisis.
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feeling immense gratitude for my advisors and mentors today 🥹
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Thrilled to be serving as an Antiracist Science Education Project Fellow with LabXchange to advance their goals of making effective teaching and learning strategies in the sciences more accessible to secondary & university educators and students.Cheers to 10 million global users!
Since LabXchange launched in January 2020, COVID-19 has changed our lives - but also shown that resilience, innovation, and learning have no limits. With the support of
@AmgenFoundation
, we're now a global community of 10 million.
Join us, and let's keep growing together.
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Excited to be speaking at
@NOVAeducation
next week (Tuesday, October 20 at 6 pm EST) about why STEM education must be historicized in order to promote more equitable and anti-racist pedagogy. Register here:
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@MadisonPayton2
Me 🙋🏾♀️ I’m a historian of medicine studying the history of race & maternal mental health
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Happening tonight!
Tonight kicks off the first of three virtual events dedicated to
#science
and
#socialjustice
!
@udodiriokwandu
will be speaking tonight at 6PM (EST) about the histories of unethical medical practices used in America from the 19th century to present.
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Today’s library haul features some new and old finds! If anyone has recommendations on books that cover reproductive/maternal health, psychiatry, and crime please send them my way 😃
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The University of Richmond is accepting applications for a full-time tenure track Assistant Professor of Health Studies with expertise in U.S. and/or global health promotion or policy to begin in August 2023. Check out the application here:
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co-developing lectures with my advisor for the fall is such a fun yet unique challenge. eager to see how they play out 😄
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The Department of Women's and Gender Studies at the University of South Carolina is hiring a postdoctoral fellow to begin in August 2023 who conducts research at the intersections of gender, race, class, and sexuality. Check it out:
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You can check out a shorter version of my talk here:
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A reminder that there is a scarcity of these spaces & that they are incredibly sacred.
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THIS.
The billions of dollars going into health disparities research is academia gaslighting: Community already knows the depth of these issues and needs money to fund solutions led by Community voices and leadership.
We don’t need any more publicly inaccesible manuscripts!! Period!
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deeply troubled by a tale shared by an undergraduate student today and am now (again) reflecting about how important it is to ensure that "constructive" feedback doesn't turn into bullying... failure to do so is bad pedagogy
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Yay! 🥳
It is with incredible gratefulness that I can FINALLY announce that I have accepted the College of Arts & Sciences Endowed Professorship & a position as associate professor in the History Dept (affiliated with Dept of Africana & American Studies) at the University at Buffalo!
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Informative article co-written by my advisor, Dr. Evelynn Hammonds, and Dr. Susan Reverby
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It is always a pleasure to collaborate with
@NOVAeducation
!
This
#Juneteenth
, learn more about the history of scientific racism from the 1800s to present, in this talk feat
@udodiriokwandu
.
Use this resource to account for gaps in
#STEMeducation
and to engage in more equitable and antiracist pedagogy:
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Giving this talk, I am reminded of how little has changed, particularly as it relates to scientific investigations into the alleged biological roots of violent behavior. When will we pay attention to AND address the fact that unrest is in response to violent, antiblack systems?
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Thank you so much
@chamandalisha
! Racism is, indeed, deeply woven into the fabric of this nation. It is well past time for a reckoning - lives depend on it.
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Back to academic Twitter after a pandemic fatigue induced hiatus 😅
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On Thursday, October 7 at 12 pm EST, I will be chatting with internationally acclaimed science journalist Laura Spinney (
@lfspinney
) to discuss her book Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How it Changed the World. Register here:
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Thank you for thinking of me! I am so glad my presentation resonated with you.
@udodiriokwandu
I thought of your
@NOVAeducation
webinar last week when viewing these numbers during an
@Aurora_Inst
session today.
#Aurora2020
#AmesLearns
#equityineducation
#teachertwitter
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Critical study by Prof. David Williams
@Harvard
. I am still so grateful I had to the opportunity to learn from him during my undergraduate career.
“A first-ever study in 2018 found that a police killing of an unarmed African American triggered days of poor mental health for Black people living in that state over the following three months.”
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Yay!! Congratulations, Adam
@CulturedModesty
🤩
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The Science in Human Culture Program (SHC) at Northwestern University invites applications for two-year postdoctoral fellowships in the contextual study of science, technology, or medicine. The official deadline is December 2, 2022. Check it out:
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As stated by
@DorothyERoberts
"Race is a social category, a political category, and race does have biological consequences. Not because of differences at the molecular level, but because of the effect of social inequality on people's health."
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I love this and aspire to execute this on my own journey.
i like to think of myself as in but not of the academy. i try to navigate it in a way that lets me embrace its best parts (exploring interesting ideas, teaching students, flexibility) while rejecting its worst ones (overwork, toxic people) and maintaining my freedom & personhood
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@nathanbossoh
@ExploreWellcome
Amazing, congratulations! I so wish I could see this in person! Kola nut was a staple in my Nigerian household growing up (and remains so).
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The article is open access, so please feel free to circulate :)
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truly appalling.
Florida female student athletes have to report their menstrual history to play: When they got their first period, when they had their last one, etc. A third party has access to that info, and parents and doctors are raising red flags
@katikokal
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Wow! I am incredibly grateful to all of you have sent warm congratulations my way! Thank you so much for celebrating with me — there’s still so much to process but my heart is so so full!
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This discourse is dangerous and obscures the true problem - social, economic, and political inequality that goes on to impact communities' health outcomes.
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The 21st annual Women’s & Gender History Symposium
@UniversityofIl
seeks graduate student papers on the histories of women, gender, sexuality, & queerness that focus on gender variance & non-conformity broadly defined. Due Nov. 30.
#histgender
#histsex
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One of my biggest frustrations with the discourse surrounding this pandemic, is that it reinforces the idea that race is a biological reality - that it is being Black and Brown in itself that causes minority communities to be disproportionately impacted.
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You are too kind! Thank you so much!
Thirdly - the best presentations were grad students. Honestly.
@udodiriokwandu
@ben_folger
and Emma Broder stood out to me, super interesting work presented in an interesting way!
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Thank you so much!
@udodiriokwandu
I just stumbled into your talk you gave on medical racism and was moved to learn of such history. Acknowledge your effort in these studies and persevere in Egalitarianism. Been visible minority and believer that all lives matter, I love people of colour be bold
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@rlouisemoran
@AyahNerd
So kind of you! I would love to talk more about your current project - it sounds fascinating. I'll reach out offline :)
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Go, Antoine!! 🥳
Baltimore, I love you! But I’m pleased to share that I accepted a tenure-track position in African American & African Studies at UC Davis, starting Fall 2024. Still feels surreal. Long live my brother O!
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