Ruth Browne, MPH, MPP, SD
Ruth C. Browne, SD, is President and Chief Executive Officer of Ronald McDonald House New York (RMH-NY), which provides temporary housing and support for pediatric cancer patients and their families in a caring and secure environment, close to the essential care and resources they need most. Prior to RMH-NY, Dr. Browne was CEO of the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health (AAIUH), a best practice catalyst for interventions that advance health and educational equity solutions for culturally diverse populations locally, nationally and internationally. Dr. Browne is a founder and a past Principal Investigator and Director of the Brooklyn Health Disparities Center, an NIH funded Center of Excellence.
She is an Associate Clinical Professor at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, and holds academic appointments in the Schools of Medicine, Health Related Professions and Public Health.
Dr. Browne is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Lewis and Jack Rudin New York Prize for Medicine and Health (2013), the JW Differenter Innovator of Change Award (2014), the Towsley Policymaker in Residence (2015) at the University of Michigan Gerald Ford School of Public Policy, the Packer Collegiate Institute Alumni Award of Honor (2017), the President’s Award, SUNY Downstate Medical Center (2017), the 1199SEIU Impact Award (2018), an inaugural honoree on the Crain’s NY list of Notable Women in Health Care (2018), a 2019 recipient of the Women in Development’s Woman of Achievement Award. She is the recipient of two Fulbright Scholar Awards.
As an active member of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Manhattan Chapter, Dr. Browne advances leadership opportunities for African-American women of all ages. She is an immediate past board member of the full-service, non-profit community hospital, Interfaith Medical Center, in Brooklyn, New York and previously served on the Board of the Center for Healthcare Strategies.
Dr. Browne earned a Bachelor’s Degree from Princeton University, a Master of Public Health and Master of Public Policy from the University of Michigan, and a Doctor of Science from Harvard University School of Public Health. She has studied, lectured and worked at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica and in Trinidad.