Dr. Aletha Akers (she/her) is an OBGYN and expert in both pediatric and adolescent gynecology and in global reproductive health research. She most recently served as Vice President for Research at the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health research and policy think tank. Previous to that, she held appointments at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia where she was the inaugural Director of Gynecologic Services, senior faculty at PolicyLab (a children’s health policy research center), and faculty in the Center for Pediatric Clinical Effectiveness (now Clinical Futures), and the Center for Global Health. Dr. Akers has also held faculty appointments in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Pittsburgh. The passion that had guided Dr. Akers’ career has always been improving access to patient-centered sexual and reproductive health services, particularly for marginalized populations. During her career, she has provided care in diverse settings, including at large, urban academic hospitals, rural community hospitals, Title X clinics, and Indian Health Service hospitals. She founded adolescent family planning and complex gynecology programs at two of the nation’s top pediatric hospitals. In addition to her clinical career, Dr. Akers has more than 20 years of experience as a health services researcher conducting policy-relevant research on a range of sexual and reproductive health issues, focusing on issues related to adolescents and young adults. Dr. Akers has authored more than 90 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, blogs, and commentaries. Dr. Akers' research has previously been supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the U.S. Office of Population Affairs, private foundations, and the private sector.