The Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership held a university-wide Sex and Gender Research Forum on Wednesday, March 13, 2019, from 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. in Behrakis Grand Hall.

View photos from the event

This interactive program highlighted Drexel’s multidisciplinary research focused on sex and gender in a local, national and global context. The event also included prominent keynote speakers who addressed current sex and gender issues, including:

• Melissa Freeman, MD, pioneering physician on the front lines of the opioid epidemic for over five decades
• Lynn Paltrow, JD, founder and executive director of National Advocates for Pregnant Women

In addition to keynote talks, the Forum included research presentations, flash talks, panel discussions, the Doris Willig, MD lecture, poster session and a reception. Selected submissions were recognized in various categories, including the Martha Montgomery Award for Sex and Gender Research.

View a Recording of the Forum

Download the program booklet [PDF]

For more information about the forum, please contact Janine Barber at jkb48@drexel.edu.

Additional details:

See event sponsors
Learn about Helen I. Moorehead-Laurencin, MD
Meet the Steering Committee
Forum staff

Sponsors

Current sponsors include Drexel's:

• College of Arts and Sciences
• College of Medicine Office of Research
• College of Nursing and Health Professions
• Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology
• Department of Psychology
• Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership
• Maternal and Child Health Program
• Mother Baby Connections Program
• Office of the Provost
• School of Education

And the:

• Laurencin Family Foundation
• Doris Willig, MD Endowment

 
 Back to Top

About Helen I. Moorehead-Laurencin, MD

Helen Isabella Moorehead-Laurencin, MD, practiced medicine from offices on the ground floor of her North Philadelphia row home for almost 45 years. She served as the strength of her community, helping five generations of individuals around her.

After graduating from Girls' High at age 15 with a straight A average, Dr. Moorehead-Laurencin went on to graduate from Cheney University at age 19 with a bachelor of science in education. She had a deep longing to help people by practicing medicine and attended the University of Pennsylvania and Meharry Medical College, where she was one of the few women to receive a medical degree at that time.

Dr. Moorehead-Laurencin led an extremely busy and rewarding life. In addition to running her practice, serving on the staff of Nazareth Hospital and the Medical College of Pennsylvania Hospital, and serving as a medical consultant for the Philadelphia Board of Education, she served as an advisor to City Hall in the area of community health as a member of the Mayor’s Health Commission in the 1980s. Dr. Moorehead-Laurencin saw her dreams come true when all three of her children graduated from Ivy League universities and became medical doctors.

Patients, friends and medical colleagues of Dr. Moorehead-Laurencin felt that she was North Philadelphia’s “matriarch.” She was a treasured resource, who guided and supported those in her community to take the extra step toward success. What made her life so remarkable was the unremarkable way she lived it. “She exemplified the best of what altruism and a thrill for knowledge and science can accomplish. She didn’t simply practice medicine, she lived it,” said her son, Dr. Cato Laurencin.

References: Philadelphia Inquirer (April 8, 1994) and the Philadelphia Tribune (April 8, 1994)

 
 Back to Top

Steering Committee

 
 Back to Top

Forum Staff Members

Ariana Albanese
Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology
College of Arts and Sciences
ama482@drexel.edu

Janine Barber, MS
Program Manager, Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership
College of Medicine
215.991.8194
jkb48@drexel.edu

Gabrielle Russo
Master’s Degree Student, Psychology
College of Arts and Sciences
gr396@drexel.edu

 
 Back to Top