Tiara C. Willie PhD, MA

Principal Investigator

Tiara C. Willie

As a social epidemiologist, Dr. Willie aims to understand the distribution, determinants, and health consequences of gender-based violence (e.g., intimate partner violence, reproductive coercion, child sexual abuse) in order to reduce the prevalence of violence and related comorbidities. Guided by the social ecological model, her research focuses on individual-, relationship-, community-, and societal-level determinants of gender-based violence and examines the health implications of gender-based violence in order to develop interventions to reduce violence and improve mental, sexual, and reproductive health.

Publications

Deja Knight, MPH, MA

Postdoctoral Fellow

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Deja Knight

Deja Knight is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. In 2024, she earned her PhD in International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg
School of Public Health. She earned a Master of Arts in Psychology, with a focus in behavioral and cognitive neurosciences, from the University of Iowa and a Master of Public Health, with a focus in social and behavioral sciences, from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research interests are HIV, PrEP, substance use, intimate partner violence, and social determinants of health in Black, low-income, and vulnerable populations.

Aashna Shah, MPH, BA

Research Coordinator

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Aashna Shah

Aashna Shah is a Research Coordinator in the MOCHA Lab at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She graduated from Case Western Reserve University, where she earned her Master of Public Health with a concentration in Health Policy and Management and a Bachelor of Arts in Medical Anthropology on the pre-medical track in 2021. Her research interests include women’s health, reproductive justice, health disparities, and food insecurity.

Amina Antar, BS

Research Program Coordinator

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Amina Antar

Amina Antar is a Research Coordinator in the MOCHA Lab at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She graduated from Stevenson University with a B.S. in Psychology on the pre-medical track in May 2023. Her research interests include healthcare disparities, relational trauma, and mental health within the Black diasporan community.

Saisri Gussenhoven, MPH

Research Program Coordinator

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Saisri Gussenhoven

Saisri Gussenhoven graduated from Johns Hopkins, where she earned her B.A. in Public Health Studies and her MSPH in International Health. Her research interests include child and adolescent and global mental health, gender-based violence, humanitarian health, and adverse childhood experiences and trauma.

Diana Starkey, BS

Research Assistant

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Diana Starkey

Diana graduated from Howard University with a major in Psychology and a minor in Human Development. Her interest in research comes from a strong passion for mental health research, particularly on the influence of environmental factors on the development of psychopathology in adolescents and emerging adults within marginalized communities. Committed to community-focused research, she is dedicated to making meaningful contributions to culturally informed mental health interventions and advancing the understanding of mental health disparities in underserved populations.

Mollie McMahon, MA

Research Data Manager

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Mollie McMahon

Mollie earned her MSPH from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in the department of Health, Behavior and Society, with a focus on program evaluation and implementation. Her BA is in Gender and Sexuality Studies from Columbia University. Mollie joins MOCHA Lab with a professional background rooted in community engagement and harm reduction. She believes that research and data are powerful tools to explore the social and structural determinants of health and to address health inequities facing vulnerable populations.

Brittany Richmond-Davis

Healthy Relationship Coach

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Brittany Richmond-Davis

Brittany recently joined Johns Hopkins as a Healthy Relationship Coach, bringing dual Master’s degrees in Social Work and Higher Education. She is known for empathy, adaptability, and commitment to supporting individuals as they build healthier, more fulfilling connections. As she settles into the role, she looks forward to contributing to a community grounded in care, learning, and growth. Brittany enjoys traveling, being with family, and carving out time to read, especially when she can do so in a new place.