Transcript Diversity Scholars Program

The Diversity Scholars Program at Boston
University School of Public Health
Lois McCloskey, DrPH
November, 2014
Department of Community Health Sciences
Our shared public health vision:
A cadre of men and women of color
leading work in communities that
experience health inequities
The challenge:
How can we as MCH programs and faculty
best support underrepresented minority
students as they gain public health skills and
grow in capacity for leadership?
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Goal: To support underrepresented
minority students to become leaders
in the fight to eliminate health inequities
Jo-Anna Rorie
PhD, CNM, MSN,
MPH, FACNM
Founding Director
Judith Bernstein
RNC, MSN, PhD
Faculty Director
Paradigm Shift
• From recruitment and retention
– Underrepresented minority students may enter with
academic disadvantage as well as extra challenges, such
as financial and family demands that compete for their
time and energy.
• To a strength based approach & community building
– Underrepresented minority students bring critical skills
and experiences that enrich the learning experience of
all students and contribute to their ability to become
leaders
Diversity Scholars at BUSPH
Academic Program
• 2 Year residency in MPH program
• Required, in addition to core MPH courses
 Coursework focused on health inequities
 Diversity Scholars Program Seminar
• Selected Skill Area:
 Program Management & Leadership
 Research & Evaluation
 Policy & Advocacy
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Financial Support
Up to half of tuition incorporating other awards (e.g. Gates, merit)
SOON: set # of credits for each student regardless of other awards
Mentoring with local community leaders of color
Match with experienced MCH public health leader/practitioner
(typically an alum)
Faculty support
DSP students meet regularly with a faculty mentor, who provides
DSP-specific advising & support, and helps process experiences in
and out of the classroom
Community-building
(Student or School-led)
Activities for students to spend time together outside of classroom
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Mentors
Craig Andrade, DrPH ‘11, MPH, RN, Director, Office
of Child & Adolescent Health, Massachusetts
Department of Public Health
Maisha Douyon Cover, MPH ‘06, Women‘s Health
Program Manager, Center for Community Health and
Health Equity at Brigham and Women‘s Hospital and
affiliated neighborhood health centers
Nashira Baril, MPH ‘06, Former Director of the Center
for Health Equity and Social Justice at the Boston Public
Health Commission
Elaine Fitzgerald, DrPH ‘12, MIA, CLC, Associate Project
Director and Perinatal Operational Lead, National
Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality
Renee Boynton-Jarrett, MD, ScD, Associate Professor of
Pediatrics, Boston University School of Medicine;
Founding Director, Vital Village Community Engagement
Network
Vivien Morris, MPH ‘98, MS, RD, LDN, Senior Project
Manager for Overarching Goals in Policy and Planning
Division at Boston Public Health Commission
Sharon Callender, RN, MPH ‘__, Coordinator, Family and
Community Health Services, Mattapan Community Health
Center
Michele David, MD, MPH, Internal Medicine, Harvard
Vanguard Medical Associates; Member, Massachusetts
Public Health Council
Julie Mottl-Santiago, CNM, MPH ‘01, Director of NurseMidwifery Services at Boston Medical Center and
founding Director of the Birth Sisters
Gerry Thomas, MPH, Director of Community Initiatives
Bureau, Boston Public Health Commission
Lessons of Our First Four Years
• Selected students are highly talented
• Many find the MPH program challenging
– balancing priorities
– connecting to a student body that has had different
opportunities and life experiences
– sense of isolation, both geographic and cultural
• Their commitment to health equity and experiences
with negotiating discrimination add a critical
component to everyone’s learning
• The DSP program offers key supports as they develop
their potential as leaders
DSP Program
STUDENTS EXPERIENCES,
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Students
Mid-point & Exit Interviews
Usefulness of financial support
“I was able to gather some work experience
while getting my degree. And that has set me
up really well in terms of now looking for a job. I
think having that flexibility, being able to space
those finances out, really benefitted me. What
do you do with a masters degree if you have no
experience?” 2013 grad
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Students
Mid-point & Exit Interviews
Appreciation of 2-year residency requirement
(chance to take more courses, discover new things)
“Because it was two years and because there
was financial support, because it was required,
it made me explore more different courses. I
took a logistics course, and that was kind of an
add-on, but that was probably one of the best
classes that I’ve taken. I was thankful for
things like that, where I was forced to add on a
class and stay longer, but I ended up getting a
lot out of it.” 2014 grad
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Students
Mid-point & Exit Interviews
DSP gives recognition to students of color:
“But I think the fact that there is a scholarship with the
purpose of diversity and addressing health disparities,
especially at BUSPH where it’s not as diverse as one
would think–I think that says a lot about recognizing
students of color. That’s something I found was really
rare in public health schools. That was part of why I
came to BUSPH, it seemed more like Oh, they really
care about diversity, and there are a lot of other
programs as well.” 2014 grad
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Students
Mid-point & Exit Interviews
Relationship with mentor very important for most
Match not always perfect, but always useful
Helpful to have non-academic mentor
“She’s always willing to meet up, and to check in on me, and
really flexible. The advice she gives is fantastic. Sometimes it’s
nice to just have someone to talk to, to bounce ideas off of.
She’s very good at being understanding, and giving really great
guidance. That’s been invaluable.” 2013-15 cohort
“I share some background experience with my mentor; it’s
been helpful to talk to him. He’s from the city and I’m from the
city. Similar family background. He chronicles his own struggles
with higher education, and how he’s been able to overcome
them. I’ve been very grateful to hear them.” 2015 grad
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Students
Mid-point & Exit Interviews
DSP on resume is platform to discuss diversity, disparities
“DSP’s whole mission statement is of course to
develop strong leadership among underrepresented
communities. To be part of a structured program
that’s trying to speak about it in a structured way puts
us in a position to be good communicators about
these issues. I’ve been armed with good information,
good peers who are thinking about these issues. It’s a
work of continuity—you just have to keep thinking
about it, you have to be conscious. I think it’s
triggered my thinking more.” 2015 grad
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Students
Mid-point & Exit Interviews
Desire for more community, group cohesion
Students of color group emerging this year
with DSP student leadership
“It didn’t really feel like we were a cohesive
group. I saw them whenever we had the
seminars, but that would have helped too,
being a minority in this school—just having
more support with other people of color.”
2013 grad
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Students
Mid-point & Exit Interviews
Frustrated by offenses by peers, faculty in classroom
“There’s been challenges in the sense that people make
assumptions about your experiences or what you’ve
done. Both students and faculty… Learning not to be
offended, but just telling people about your experiences is
a challenge I’ve experienced.” 2012 grad
“I’ve found that sometimes there are racially or culturally
insensitive things said in class by professors or classmates
[that] just rub me the wrong way. I’ve only talked about
these things to classmates who are from minority groups,
or in the DSP, who feel the same way.” 2013-15 cohort
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Mentors
Interviews end of Year 3
See their role with student mentee as
• Connecting to world of public health outside school,
and neighborhoods and organizations in Boston
• Talking about public health leadership & advocacy
• Including them in work activities, making introductions
• Helping think through interests, options, preparation
for workplace (academic & non-academic)
Diversity Scholars Program at BUSPH
Evaluation: Mentors
Interviews end of Year 3
Importance of connection to Boston neighborhoods
“To the extent that they’re underrepresented
minorities at the [BU] school of public health,
they’re not underrepresented minorities in the
larger community. If they’re not from here, a big
support for them could be being tied in more with
this community here.”
In summary….
• The DSP Program turns an outdated retention
focus into a strength-based, community building
approach
• Financial supports are critical
• Supportive faculty and mentors facilitate growth,
connection and development as leaders
• Goals for the future include program expansion,
and enhancement of opportunities for cohesion
and mutual support (a DSP community)
Questions We Ask…
• How can we select Diversity Scholars most wisely?
(most likely to succeed academically, most
disadvantaged, most committed?)
• Whether to and how to incorporate other kinds of
diversity, such as LGBTQ, low-income families, and
disability, as we expand DSP?
• How can we best support the mentor relationships,
and students to take lead in community building?
• In our classrooms how can we value and incorporate
life experience of students of color in a way that is
safe and does not require them to speak on behalf of
all?