Molly DeMarco

Molly DeMarco, PhD, MPH, serves as Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutrition at the Gillings School of Global Public Health and Research Scientist at the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, both at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned her PhD in Public Health with a focus on Health Promotion and Health Behavior from Oregon State University in 2007, her MPH with a concentration in Behavioral Sciences and Health Education from Emory University in 2000, and her BS in Biological Sciences from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1996. Her career at UNC-Chapel Hill began with a National Research Service Award postdoctoral fellowship in Health Services Research at the Cecil G. Sheps Center from 2007 to 2009, followed by her role as Research Fellow and Project Director at the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention starting in 2009, and appointment as Research Assistant Professor in Nutrition since 2014. DeMarco leads the Food, Fitness + Opportunity Research Collaborative and has directed a USDA SNAP-Ed funded program for over ten years, aiding SNAP recipients with healthy food purchases, community gardens, extension of Summer Meals in rural areas, development of county-level food policy councils, and research on healthy food choices in rural grocery and convenience stores, all examined through a racial equity lens.

DeMarco's research specializes in determinants of health disparities and food insecurity, utilizing community-based participatory research to engage low-income and historically marginalized populations. She co-developed and teaches Nutrition 245: Sustainable, Local Food Systems – Intersection of Local Foods and Public Health, a service-learning course offered each spring. Notable awards include induction into the Delta Omega National Public Health Honor Society in 2023, the UNC-Chapel Hill Office of the Provost Engaged Scholarship Award in Research in 2016, the NIH Health Disparities Loan Repayment Program from 2008 to 2010, and the Postdoctoral Scholars Award for Research Excellence in 2008. Key publications encompass “In a country as affluent as America, people should be eating”: experiences with and perceptions of food insecurity among rural and urban Oregonians (Qualitative Health Research, 2009), Perceived discrimination during prenatal care, labor, and delivery: An examination of data from the Oregon Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (American Journal of Public Health, 2008), Behavioral economics and the supplemental nutrition assistance program: making the healthy choice the easy choice (American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2017), and Beyond incentives for involvement to compensation for consultants: increasing equity in CBPR approaches (Progress in Community Health Partnerships, 2013). Her contributions advance community-engaged strategies in public health nutrition and food systems.

Professional Email: molly_demarco@unc.edu