Donna Shelley

Dr. Donna Shelley is Professor of Public Health Policy and Management and Vice Dean for Research at NYU School of Global Public Health, where she co-directs the Global Center for Implementation Science. Her research accelerates the dissemination and implementation of evidence-based tobacco control policies and treatment in healthcare systems globally. Funded by NIH institutes including NCI, NIDA, and NHLBI, her work addresses the dual burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries.

Her translational research develops theory-driven strategies to overcome implementation barriers in primary care settings, with active projects in the United States and Vietnam. She evaluates policy impacts and implementation processes, such as her recent assessment of the federally mandated smoke-free public housing policy. Current NIH-funded randomized controlled trials examine behavioral interventions and pharmacotherapy for tobacco cessation among people living with HIV/AIDS in Vietnam.

Prior to NYU, Dr. Shelley was a senior program official at NIH where she led strategic planning and managed HIV/AIDS programs, including the Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine Program and the Human, Heredity, and Health in Africa (H3Africa) Initiative. She has received multiple awards for leadership in managing large-scale NIH programs that bridge research and practice in global health contexts.