Margaret Marsh

Margaret Marsh is a University Professor and Distinguished Professor of History at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, with primary affiliations at Rutgers University–Camden in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and the Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research at Rutgers Health. She holds a Ph.D. from Rutgers and has made significant contributions to the academic and administrative life of the university.

Her educational background includes a doctorate from Rutgers University, where her scholarly journey began and flourished. Her leadership roles have included serving as interim Chancellor of Rutgers–Camden (2020–2021), Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and Graduate School (1998–2007, 2009–2010), and Executive Dean (2010–2011).

Margaret Marsh's research centers on the history of gender, medicine, and reproduction. Her interdisciplinary work explores how cultural, medical, and political forces have shaped understandings of fertility, infertility, and reproductive technology. She has co-authored three major books with her sister, Wanda Ronner, a physician, blending historical analysis with clinical insight. Her scholarship spans from colonial-era conceptions of reproduction to contemporary assisted reproductive technologies, examining their ethical, social, and scientific dimensions.

Her publications, including The Empty Cradle, The Fertility Doctor, and The Pursuit of Parenthood, reflect a consistent focus on the intersection of science, gender, and society. These works analyze the evolution of reproductive medicine, the experiences of patients, and the moral controversies surrounding new technologies.

• Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 2022
• Paul W. Eberman Faculty Research Prize, Temple University, 1996
• Outstanding Academic Book, Choice Magazine, for The Empty Cradle
• Finalist, 2020 PROSE Award in History of Science, Medicine, and Technology
• Investigator Award in Health Policy Research, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Margaret Marsh has advised numerous graduate students and led major research initiatives. Her work has been supported by multi-year grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. She has also played a vital role in shaping higher education policy in New Jersey, particularly through her advocacy for Rutgers–Camden’s autonomy and research growth. Her service includes leadership roles in the American Association for the History of Medicine, Planned Parenthood of Southern New Jersey, and various national boards and committees.

She has been a consultant for PBS documentaries on the birth control pill and in vitro fertilization and has contributed to public discourse through media appearances on NPR and op-eds on reproductive rights and higher education reform.