Our Education-Enhanced Pipeline to a Public Health Service Corps is designed to inspire and prepare the next generation of public health professionals in Connecticut. By connecting high school students and college graduates with hands-on learning experiences, we aim to spark interest in public health careers and provide the tools needed to succeed.

These programs are supported by funds made available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Center for STLT Public Health Infrastructure and Workforce, through OE22-2203: Strengthening U.S. Public Health Infrastructure, Workforce, and Data Systems grant.

This initiative is made up of three main components:

Early College Experience Course (ECE)

Through collaboration with UConn’s Early College Experience (ECE) program, our project will support the instruction of PUBH 1001 Introduction to Public Health at Connecticut high schools for credit applicable to UConn and other colleges and universities. This course, traditionally offered to UConn undergraduates, will be delivered at participating high schools, allowing students to earn college credit applicable to UConn and other institutions. PUBH 1001 offers a comprehensive overview of public health, encompassing its history, philosophy, and scientific foundations. Students will explore the biological, environmental, and social determinants of health, applying these principles to identify health challenges, assess potential causes, and recommend effective public health interventions. The ECE curriculum matches that of the undergraduate course, allowing for consistency in content, assignments, and assessments.

Public Health Leadership Certificate

Our Public Health Leadership Certificate is designed for professionals aiming to advance into managerial roles within public health and human services organizations. This program combines academic coursework with practical experience to develop essential public health leadership skills.

Program Structure:

• Curriculum: Complete a 9-credit, 3-course sequence delivered through a flexible format that includes day-long Saturday sessions and online activities.
• Capstone Project: Engage in a 3-credit independent research or service project under the guidance of the program coordinator.
• Participate in team-based, problem-solving exercises covering topics such as program evaluation, risk communication, community development, strategic planning, project management, advocacy, budgeting, informatics, systems thinking, human resource management, public health ethics, and community-based research.
• Designed to be completed within 12 to 18 months, with the flexibility to accommodate the schedules of working professionals.

Population Health Outreach Education

Population-focused approaches to mitigating personal-level health issues are ever more necessary, given the rise in natural disasters, man-made emergencies, pandemic outbreaks, domestic crises, and global changes.

Program Objectives:

• Collaborate with educational institutions across Connecticut to expand access to public health education and training.
• Assist local governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and private entities in integrating evidence-based public health practices into their operations.
• Focus on critical areas such as climate-related health impacts, vaccine policies, sexual health education, worker protections, nicotine reduction, gun control, food safety, single-payer health insurance, reproductive rights, and mental health services.