Why Building Beautiful Babies™ Was Created
Building Beautiful Babies™ grew from a shared commitment to address the real conditions that shape maternal health outcomes.
Too often, families are expected to navigate pregnancy, birth, and postpartum recovery while managing stress, information overload, fragmented support systems, and barriers to trusted guidance.
Improving outcomes requires more than making information available. It requires ensuring that information is accessible, culturally relevant, timely, and actionable.
Our Focus
Building Beautiful Babies™ centers on three interconnected priorities:
Reducing stress. Expanding access to trusted education. Delivering guidance that fits naturally into everyday life.
Rather than expecting families to navigate complex medical information on their own, the initiative brings evidence-based education directly to Black birthing people and those who care for them through trusted community channels, engaging digital content, and opportunities to learn from leading experts.
A Collaborative Approach
Building Beautiful Babies™ was intentionally designed as a collaboration, bringing together complementary expertise to address both the emotional and practical realities of pregnancy and the postpartum period.
Marie Boone Clark brings decades of experience in health education, community engagement, and translating complex health information into clear, relatable guidance.
Dr. Valencia P. Walker is a neonatologist and nationally recognized leader in health equity, community engagement, and medical education. She brings deep clinical expertise and a longstanding commitment to advancing equitable care and strengthening the healthcare workforce.
Dr. Angela Neal-Barnett is an internationally recognized psychologist, researcher, author, and professor whose pioneering work has advanced the understanding of stress, anxiety, resilience, and well-being among Black women and families.
For decades, Dr. Neal-Barnett has translated behavioral science into practical strategies that help individuals and communities thrive. Her expertise ensures that Building Beautiful Babies™ addresses emotional well-being and stress management alongside physical health.
Supporting the Whole Journey
Healthy pregnancies and healthy babies are shaped by far more than medical care alone.
Emotional well-being, social support, confidence, knowledge, and the ability to act on trusted information all play critical roles.
Building Beautiful Babies™ strengthens these protective factors by equipping families with practical tools, trusted resources, and culturally resonant education that can help them navigate pregnancy and early parenthood with greater confidence and support.
What We Believe
Every family deserves access to the knowledge, support, and resources needed to experience pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period as safely and successfully as possible.
By combining expertise in maternal and infant health, behavioral science, health equity, community engagement, and culturally responsive education, Building Beautiful Babies™ offers an approach that is evidence-based, practical, and deeply connected to the lived experiences of the families it serves.
One Cohesive Model
