Rani Kotha

Rani Kotha, JD, MPH is a Senior Strategist at the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics. Rani has over 28 years of experience in public health, global health, maternal/child health, human rights, humanitarian assistance and economic/social development and has served as a senior administrator/research academic with expertise in program design and management, resource development, strategic planning, marketing, and communications and public health education and training. Prior to joining USC, Rani served as the Senior Strategist in Global Health, for the University-wide Institute for Global Health Equity & Innovation (IGHE&I) at the University of Toronto; Executive Director of the University of Michigan Center for Global Health (UMCGH); and Director at Oxfam America (a global humanitarian non-governmental organization based in Boston). Rani began her career at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Throughout her career, Rani has made significant contributions to expanding global health initiatives: 1) At IGHE&I, she led an 18 month strategic planning process culminating in a Global Health Summit and the launch of 5 main programmatic foci areas and the establishment of the Institute’s mission, vision and strategic objectives, 2) She developed and/or deepened the University of Toronto and Government of Canada health initiatives in China, Gaza, Ethiopia, Thailand, Vietnam and led an innovative academic NGO collaboration with the Shanti Ashram in southern India, 3) Rani served as a co-organizer, collaborator and co-author on a Lancet Series on Health Equity and Women’s Cancers, 4) At University of Michigan, Rani oversaw the initial visioning process that led to the establishment of the University-wide Center for Global Health, and worked with faculty to leverage a 25-year relationship between the University of Michigan, University of Ghana and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana for a successful application of a multi-million dollar Gates Foundation grant of the newly formed UMCGH, focused on human resources for health and health systems strengthening in Ghana 5) At Harvard, Rani’s efforts contributed to the creation of the Botswana-Harvard AIDS Institute Partnership (BHP), a collaborative research and training initiative between the Government of Botswana and Harvard; and the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), an initiative designed to create independent schools of public health to meet the shortfall of public health professionals in India.

Rani holds a JD from Boston College Law School, a MPH in International Health and Health Services from Boston University School of Public Health, and a BA (magna cum laude) in International Relations from Boston University.