Carla Davis leads in pediatric health and immunologic research

By Kelvin Childs

Carla Davis (’92, B.A.), M.D., took Howard University’s mission of excellence in truth and service to heart early on, when she served meals in soup kitchens as a freshman.

Pivoting from her initial interest in chemical engineering, Davis went into medicine and research into child diseases, becoming a pediatric allergist immunologist. Today, Davis is chair of the Department of Pediatrics and Child Health at Howard University College of Medicine. And she is poised to become the first African-American president of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology in 2026.

This is a big change from her initial ambitions. “I didn't really want to go into medical school when I came to Howard; I wanted to be an engineer,” Davis said. But Howard gave her the space to be herself.

“I chose to go to an HBCU because, prior to my college years, I really felt the weight of being the only minority Black student in most of my classes, and I wanted to be in an environment where I would be free to be Carla and not just ‘the special Black student’,” she said.

Encouraged by her parents — both of whom are HBCU graduates — and with a full-tuition scholarship, Davis played the flute in band and studied chemical engineering. But when she joined the In Living Color student group, she found her faith and became a disciple of Jesus Christ as she studied the historical figure and the religious figure.

“I felt, because of that decision, that I wanted to focus my love for science to really help people, because that’s what I saw throughout the scriptures, Jesus Christ touching people, healing people and making people better,” Davis said.

She applied to Duke University School of Medicine and got a full scholarship. Through medical school and marriage to her husband Eric Davis (’91, B.A., magna cum laude), whom she met at Howard, Davis continued service throughout her academic career. It took her to Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, for internship and fellowship for research as well as practice. Joining the Baylor faculty, Davis rose from assistant professor to associate professor to professor and then became division director of the Division of Immunology, Allergy and Retrovirology.

Her commitment to medicine is coupled with her commitment to giving back. Davis has served on the board of The Impact Movement, a ministry that focuses on Black students on college campuses, linking churches with college students to meet their various needs. Also, “I’ve also recently started a nonprofit called Family Faith Healthcare Clinic to bring health screenings and spiritual counseling and prayer to communities,” based in Houston, Davis said.

Even at Howard, students have issues such as food insecurity. “There’s a food bank for medical students. And so, I don't like to put this out there, but I started giving to the food bank here for food insecure medical students too, because they struggle. It can be a struggle for many students,” Davis said.

As for giving to Howard, Davis jokes that she’s put two of her four children through school here, one in civil engineering, one in mechanical engineering. Another is in music and the youngest is in high school going through the application process. But Davis is inspired to give because she received the Howard Forward magazine.

“I do think alumni should give, because Howard is continuing to do exceptional work in graduating and producing the most qualified Black professionals in our community. And if we don't give back, then, you know, we shouldn’t expect that it’s going to come from somewhere else. I think that those of us who are doing well should give back to the University.”

Giving plants the seeds for fixing issues like health disparities in Black communities. One solution, she said, is placing more Black professionals in the healthcare system and in medical research. “There are very few Black female department chairs in pediatrics and also in other fields, and what better place to engage patients in research than at an historically Black institution that is trusted by the community?” Davis said.

“I can contribute to medical student education and also physician education, and that’s really what I’m here to do.”

A donation to the Rana Pediatric Fund supports Howard’s valuable medical research. Please give here.