Maria Elena Bottazzi, Ph.D.
Interim Co-Director, Global Programs
Dr. Maria Elena Bottazzi is a distinguished scientist and global leader in vaccinology and neglected tropical diseases. She is professor of pediatrics and molecular virology and microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine, where she serves as senior associate dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine, division chief of pediatric tropical medicine, and co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development.
Dr. Bottazzi has advanced global health for more than two decades through the development of vaccines for diseases disproportionately affecting underserved populations. She is widely recognized for co-developing the open-science COVID-19 vaccine technology that enabled Corbevax and IndoVac, with more than 100 million doses delivered globally.
Her leadership and advocacy for equitable vaccine access have earned her major distinctions, including election to the National Academy of Medicine and recognition as one of Forbes’ 100 Most Powerful Women in Central America. She is also a Leshner Public Engagement Fellow and an alumna of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine program.
Dr. Bottazzi received her bachelor's degree from the National Autonomous University of Honduras and her doctorate in Molecular Immunology and Experimental Pathology from the University of Florida, followed by postdoctoral training at the University of Miami and the University of Pennsylvania.
Rachel Wilkins Davis, M.D., FACS
Interim Co-Director of Global Programs
Dr. Rachel Davis is an academic global surgeon at Baylor College of Medicine, where she is director of the Baylor Center for Global Surgery, interim co-director of Global Programs and associate professor of surgery.
As a resident, she created and developed the Baylor Global Surgery Track of the general surgery residency program. Now in its eleventh year, it is the only integrated global surgery training program in the nation and the only global surgery program in the NRMP match.
Additionally, she is the director of strategic planning in the Division of Global Surgery at Texas Children’s Hospital. She has created numerous educational programs for trainees and professionals, including development of the Global Trauma Collaboration, which provides biweekly virtual trauma education for conflict zones, the Baylor Global Surgery Advocacy & Policy Fellowship in collaboration with Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, and the Essential Surgery Skills Conference in conjunction with the National School of Tropical Medicine. Dr. Davis has worked toward expansion of surgical access in Ecuador, Guatemala, Malawi, Mongolia, Morocco, Nepal, Myanmar and Tanzania.