Catherine Hayes, DMD, SM, DMSc, is the Chair of the Department of Oral Health Policy and Epidemiology and Program Director of Dental Public Health at HSDM. She is the former Dental Director of MassHealth, the Massachusetts Medicaid and CHIP program. She is a diplomate and a past president of the American Board of Dental Public Health. She has served as president of the American Association of Public Health Dentistry. She has held leadership positions in academic institutions, and national and international organizations. Dr. Hayes has been actively involved in research and policy initiatives related to oral health disparities and inequities throughout her career.

She received her B.S. in Biology from Boston College and her D.M.D. from Tufts University, magna cum laude. She completed a General Practice Residency at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and received both Master's and Doctoral degrees in Epidemiology from Harvard University where she also completed a Dental Public Health Residency.