Michelle Beadle Holder, Ph.D. is an avid gardener who enjoys teaching and learning about the diverse food and cultural heritage of the Africa and the Caribbean diaspora.

Over the last fifteen years, she has worked as a medical sociologist studying African American health at the intersection of race, gender, class, religion, and social location. Dr. Holder has worked on racial health equity projects at the Metropolitan Washington Public Health Association (MWPHA), the University of Maryland, Georgetown University, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the Maryland Department of Health.  Her research has appeared in the Journal of African American Studies, Substance Use and Misuse, and the American Journal of Health Behavior. She has taught sociological mindfulness to undergraduates and has developed curriculum on mindful eating for women of color.  Dr. Holder completed her doctorate at the University of Maryland, College Park and currently resides in Columbia, MD with her husband.