Professor Segrid Renne specializes in racial disparities in maternal healthcare.
Hostos Community College is proud to announce that Segrid Renne, Assistant Professor in the Health Education Unit of the Education Department, has been named an awardee of the 2025-2026 CUNY Faculty Fellowship Publication Program (FFPP). The fellowship will support Professor Renne’s research and publication project examining racial disparities in maternal health and identifying actionable strategies to improve outcomes for Black, Indigenous, and other women of color.
Professor Renne’s work is driven by a commitment to addressing persistent inequities in pregnancy-related outcomes in the United States. She was first motivated to focus on maternal health disparities after learning that Black women face significantly higher risks of pregnancy-related complications and death compared to white women, regardless of income or education.
“Seeing how these inequities are shaped by systemic bias, unequal access to care, and long-standing structural racism compelled me to investigate solutions that could help create more equitable outcomes for mothers and families,” said Professor Renne.
Her research examines modifiable factors within the health care system, areas where change is both possible and urgently needed. These include implicit bias in clinical decision-making, differences in how patient concerns are heard and addressed, and gaps in adherence to evidence-based obstetric protocols.
Current disparities remain stark. Black, Indigenous, and other women of color experience significantly higher rates of severe maternal complications and pregnancy-related deaths compared to white women. These inequities are often compounded by disproportionate rates of preexisting conditions, inadequate prenatal support, and delayed treatment.
Professor Renne’s project not only documents these challenges but also advances practical solutions that health care institutions can implement immediately. Among the most actionable recommendations are adopting standardized, evidence-based obstetric safety protocols, providing ongoing implicit bias training for providers, improving data tracking by race and ethnicity, and establishing clear accountability systems to ensure equitable care delivery.
“This work is about translating research into practice,” Renne explained. “Health systems already have many of the tools needed to reduce inequities. The key is implementing them consistently and holding institutions accountable for equitable outcomes.”
The FFPP supports CUNY faculty in advancing scholarly work that contributes to public knowledge and addresses pressing social issues. Professor Renne’s project reflects CUNY’s mission to foster research that promotes equity, access, and community well-being.
Hostos is well represented in this year’s CUNY FFPP, with Sarah Hoiland, Sociology Professor, serving as a mentor for the Social Sciences fellows.
As she reflects on her experience, Hoiland notes that the program “changed the trajectory of my research and career.” A fellow in 2015–2016, she has remained connected to her cohort for more than a decade and, since becoming a mentor in 2023–2024, has found the role especially gratifying. She values the program’s interdisciplinary, intercampus collaborations, which bring together “the best and brightest at CUNY” to support sustained research and publication success.
Together, Professor Renne’s scholarship and Professor Hoiland’s mentorship underscore Hostos’ vital role in advancing CUNY’s research mission. By supporting faculty whose work confronts urgent social and health inequities, the College continues to contribute knowledge that informs academic discourse and drives meaningful change in the communities it serves.