Mark A. Edwards is co-founder and CEO of Upstream USA, a nonprofit focused on expanding women’s access to contraceptive care. Under his leadership, the organization secured a $60 million investment and helped reduce unplanned pregnancies among low-income patients in Delaware by 24%. Edwards previously founded Opportunity Nation, a bipartisan coalition of over 250 nonprofits aimed at improving economic mobility by reforming federal policy.

From the first business he launched in his freshman year at Harvard to his current work at Upstream, Edwards’ career has centered on issues of healthcare equity and economic mobility, inspired by his father’s journey as a barrier-breaking Black cardiologist. Edwards has also served advisory and board roles in numerous nonprofit organizations and has been recognized as an Ashoka Fellow and a Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Entrepreneur. 

In his candidate statement, Edwards highlighted Harvard’s responsibilities after the Supreme Court’s affirmative action ruling: “Universities across the country will look to Harvard to show how to deliver on its commitment to create a diverse student body.”