Dr. Mary Davis is an associate professor in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning and the Senior Associate Vice Provost for Education at Tufts. Professor Davis’ research explores the relationship between work, the environment, and well-being as a universal human experience. Her scholarship has been recognized by the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine with the award for best publication in 2021, as well as leadership roles with the National Academy of Sciences. Her first book entitled Jobs, Health, and the Meaning of Work (MIT Press) was published in 2024. Her most recent work focuses on the labor market and work experience of nurses, using an anthropological approach to explore the challenges and opportunities for the profession and the US healthcare system more broadly.
Professor Davis received degrees in Economics from the University of Miami (BA) and the University of Florida (MS/PhD). She recently completed an associate’s degree in nursing from Bunker Hill Community College (ADN). She has held research appointments at the Harvard School of Public Health, University of Maine, University of Massachusetts Boston, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Boston University. Professor Davis teaches a range of urban planning and policy courses at Tufts, including economics, public health, built environment, and statistics, and is known for her innovative teaching practices engaging poetry as a teaching and learning tool. She served as department chair from 2016 to 2021 and again from 2023 to 2024. She presently serves as the Senior Associate Vice Provost for Education in the Office of the Provost at Tufts.