Mary Potorti

Mary Potorti is an Associate Professor of Politics and Social Sciences at the School of Arts and Sciences, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), with office W202A in Boston. She holds a PhD in American Studies from Boston University and a B.A. in American Studies and History from the University of Maryland Baltimore County.

Her educational qualifications include:

• PhD., American studies, Boston University
• B.A., American studies and history, University of Maryland Baltimore County

Dr. Potorti's research centers on the Black freedom struggle, social justice movements, racial equity, and intersections of politics and food, with strong connections to U.S. government analysis. Her work bridges historical scholarship with contemporary health equity frameworks, particularly through food justice lenses in public health contexts.

Her publications reveal consistent thematic focus on food as political resistance, examining the Black Panther Party's community programs, voting rights struggles in Mississippi, and culinary nationalism in the Nation of Islam. This interdisciplinary output spans history, political science, and health education, demonstrating evolving applications from historical analysis to modern curriculum development.

Key honors include:

• Arts and Sciences Teaching Excellence Award, Honorable Mention, MCPHS (2022)
• Inclusive Excellence Faculty Fellow, Emerson College (2017)
• Mary Kelley Prize, New England American Studies Association (2016)
• Visiting Fellowship, W.E.B DuBois Institute, Harvard University (2013)
• Angela J. and James J. Rallis Memorial Award, BU Center for the Humanities (2012)
• Edwin S. and Ruth M. White Prize, BU Center for the Humanities (2012)

No information regarding student advisement or grant funding appears in available materials. Her professional activities focus on curriculum development within MCPHS's extensive health sciences programs rather than laboratory-based research.