The Health Equity Scholars program is a two-year scholarship and leadership development opportunity for select students entering the Master of Public Health program at Brown. In recent years, the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and racism have revealed deep disparities in health systems and outcomes, and the Health Equity Scholars program reflects Brown’s commitment to addressing these inequities. The Health Equity Scholars program offers up to full tuition support, a paid research assistantship, and structured mentoring and coaching for exceptional students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI), and local communities in Rhode Island.
Date
October 7, 2022
Introducing the 2022 Health Equity Scholars
On September 9, the School of Public Health and the School of Professional Studies launched the second cohort of the Health Equity Scholars program with an overnight retreat at Camp Canonicus.
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The School of Public Health commissioned the School of Professional Studies to design and deliver a two-year experiential curriculum in leadership. Led by Robin Rose, Associate Professor of the Practice of Leadership at the School of Professional Studies, this curriculum features Brown faculty, subject matter experts, and coaches to support the Scholars and supplement their MPH curriculum.
“We are excited to partner with the School of Public Health to provide this critical leadership training,” said Shankar Prasad, dean of the School of Professional Studies. “This program draws on Brown's interdisciplinary excellence to develop compassionate public health leaders with bold ideas and diverse perspectives."
Nineteen Scholars were selected for this year’s cohort, bringing the total number of Scholars to 31. The retreat was designed to build connections within and between the two cohorts, teach foundational leadership and team building skills through experiential exercises, and give the Scholars access to leaders at the School of Public Health.
The interim dean of the School of Public Health, Ron Aubert, joined the Scholars for part of the retreat and spoke with the first year students about his career in public health. “With this new cohort, we are continuing the tradition of identifying some of the brightest young people to participate in the HES program”, Dean Aubert noted. ”We remain committed to the program’s objective: creating a diverse generation of leaders who will use their experience and perspectives to transform the future of public health.”
Rosenny “Rosey” Taveras is the Director of Health Equity Scholars, and the program receives leadership sponsorship from Jai-Me Potter-Rutledge, SPH Interim Assistant Dean of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and Kathryn Kempton Amaral, Senior Director of Public Health Leadership.