Mary Willis
Profiles

Mary Willis, PhD, MPH

Assistant Professor, Epidemiology - Boston University School of Public Health

(617) 358-3728
Talbot
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Biography

Mary D. Willis, Ph.D., M.P.H., is an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Epidemiology (primary) and Environmental Health (secondary) at the Boston University School of Public Health. Dr. Willis investigates how energy systems and associated infrastructure impact population health, grounded in a structural determinants of health framework. Her research integrates spatial epidemiology, quasi-experimental methods, and data science to generate evidence for health-protective policy interventions.

Currently, Dr. Willis is PI of an NIH Director’s Early Independence Award examining how oil and gas development may impact fertility and pregnancy. She is also a co-investigator on NIH-funded studies on environmental determinants of fertility in Pregnancy Study Online and Black Women's Health Study. Previously, Dr. Willis was a co-investigator on an accountability study of vehicle emission regulations and birth outcomes that was funded by the Health Effects Institute.

Other Positions

  • Assistant Professor, Environmental Health - Boston University School of Public Health

Education

  • Oregon State University, PhD Field of Study: Public Health
  • University of Rochester, MPH Field of Study: Public Health - Epidemiology
  • University of Rochester, BA Field of Study: Epidemiology/Environmental Studies

Websites

Classes Taught

  • SPHEP857
  • SPHEP911
  • SPHEP912

Publications

  • Published on 7/28/2026

    Zhou J, Lin EZ, Wesselink AK, Schildroth S, Willis MD, Hatch EE, Wise LA, Godri Pollitt KJ. Contribution of Consumer Products to Emerging Chemical Exposures in a Preconception Cohort Study. Environ Sci Technol. 2026 Jul 28; 60(29):20197-20212. PMID: 42457234.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 5/8/2026

    Burrows K, Black-Ingersoll F, Sprague NL, Grady S, Vrkljan K, Ferguson T, Just A, Willis M, Oblath R, Nori-Sarma A. Warm season hourly temperature and psychiatric emergencies: A case-crossover study of a vulnerable population in Boston, 2005-2019. Environ Epidemiol. 2026 Jun; 10(3):e478. PMID: 42109516.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 5/1/2026

    Willis MD, Sluzalis S, Casey JA. A Policy Lens on Climate Vulnerability and Health Insurance. JAMA Netw Open. 2026 May 01; 9(5):e2615210. PMID: 42201738.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 4/17/2026

    Koenig MR, Vrkljan KA, Mooney FA, Campbell EJ, Deziel NC, Hatch EE, Wesselink AK, Wise LA, Willis MD. Residential proximity to oil and gas development and risk of gestational diabetes mellitus. Int J Epidemiol. 2026 Apr 17; 55(3). PMID: 42275297.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 3/28/2026

    Clark CJ, Campbell E, Grady ST, Buonocore J, Aker A, Deziel NC, Casey JA, Willis M. School-based exposures to oil and gas development for public school children in the United States. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2026 Jul; 36(4):705-712. PMID: 41904266.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 3/17/2026

    Lovett SM, Wise LA, Richardson AS, Campbell EJ, Vrkljan KA, Kirwa K, Wesselink AK, Rothman KJ, Willis MD. A preconception cohort study of historical mortgage lending discrimination and present-day fecundability. Am J Epidemiol. 2026 Mar 17; 195(4):1185-1194. PMID: 41342351.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 3/10/2026

    J Clark C, C Bond J, A Vrkljan K, Rowse M, Polka E, J Campbell E, K Wesselink A, Aker A, D Willis M. Oil and Gas Development and Adverse Birth Outcomes: A Qualitative and Quantitative Bias Analysis of the Epidemiologic Literature. Curr Environ Health Rep. 2026 Mar 10; 13(1). PMID: 41806058.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 2/1/2026

    Lovett SM, Campbell EJ, Richardson AS, Wesselink AK, Ncube CN, Cozier YC, Wise LA, Willis MD. Racialized economic segregation in relation to fecundability in a preconception cohort study. J Urban Health. 2026 Feb; 103(1):104-119. PMID: 41422358.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 1/29/2026

    Willis MD, Sheng C, Lovett SM, Feldscher T, Sims KD, Francis B, Hicks JM, Holder EX, Wise LA, Cozier YC, Wesselink AK. Historical Neighborhood Redlining and Fertility in a Cohort of US Black Women. Epidemiology. 2026 Mar 01; 37(2):268-277. PMID: 41397260.

     Read At: PubMed
  • Published on 1/23/2026

    Thombs RP, Sovacool BK, Jorgenson AK, Buonocore JJ, Willis MD. A Not-So-Just Transition? Examining the Effects of Coal Sector Decline on Life Expectancy in U.S. Counties. Rural Sociology. 2026; 91(1).

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