Mara

Dr. Amara Okonkwo

"Black maternal health is not a project. It's a promise."

Nickname

Mara

Grew up in

Lagos, Nigeria, then Atlanta from age 12

School

Spelman College, Emory School of Medicine

A big challenge

Moving across the world at 12 and rebuilding a sense of home

Languages

English, Igbo, French

Favorite book

The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson

Favorite music

Afrobeats playlists and 90s R&B

Surprise fact

I was a competitive long-distance runner in college

Inspiration

My mother, a nurse who worked three jobs to put us through school

Teams

Atlanta Falcons (loyally suffering)

A joke

I tell my twins patients: two for the price of, well, two.

Goals

Open a free prenatal clinic in my home city

Bucket list