Renee Mahaffey Harris, MPH, is a committed advocate for the marginalized populations in Greater Cincinnati and the region.  Mahaffey Harris leads The Health Gap in its mission to lead the efforts to eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities through advocacy, education, and community outreach. Mahaffey Harris history received her undergraduate Bachelor of Science degree in Communication, Ohio University and Master of Public Health, Morehouse College of Medicine.

During her tenure at The Health Gap, Mahaffey Harris jointly created the City of Cincinnati’s Health in All Policy and launched several groundbreaking community-based health initiatives including: The Ohio African American Health Disparities Collaborative and the Black Women’s Health Movement, which is an Ohio collaboration with the national organization Black Women’s Health Imperative.  Harris served as a member of the Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s COVID 19 Minority Strike Task Force President of Ohio African American Health Disparities Coalition and was appointed Co-Chair City of Cincinnati Racial Equity Taskforce and a member of the National Council on Black Health-Subcommittee on national programs.  Harris has been awarded the YWCA Racial Justice Awardee 2020, UC Health MLK Humanitarian Award, The Urban One National Shero Award, Cincinnati Herald Nefertiti Awardee, 2022 Business Courier Women Who Means Business Awardee 2022 and the City of Cincinnati Black History Month Honoree.