22nd National Health Equity Research Webcast
Political Power, Policy and Health Equity
Overview
In its 22nd year, the National Health Equity Research Webcast, hosted by the Gillings School of Global Public Health in partnership with campus units, discussed importance of policy for advancing health equity, importance of political power for policy development and implementation, and factors that influence distribution of political power such as: public relations, media and lobbying, partisan voter redistricting, voter disqualification, accessibility of polling times and places, handling of absentee and provisional ballots; and vote counting irregularities.
View the 2016 Archived Webcast
Featured Video Segments
- Opening and Introductions
- Mildred Thompson, Senior Director and Director of the PolicyLink Center for Health Equity and Place
- Malia Villegas, Director, National Congress of American Indians Policy Research Center
- Lydia Camarillo, Vice-President, Southwest Voter Registration Education Project (SVREP)
- Question and Answer Period
- Sponsors and Credits
Panelists
Mildred Thompson, Senior Director and Director of the PolicyLink Center for Health Equity and Place – Thompson leads the organization’s health team, with work focusing on healthy food access, improving the built environment, and the systemic integration of health equity. A significant component of her work involves exploring community factors that impact health and identifying effective solutions. Prior to joining PolicyLink, she was director of community health services for Alameda County’s Public Health Department; director of Healthy Start; and director of the San Antonio Neighborhood Health Center. Mildred has degrees in nursing, psychology, and social work. She has taught at Mills College and San Francisco State University, and also worked as an organizational development consultant. Mildred is a frequent speaker on topics related to health equity and serves on several boards and commissions including The Zellerbach Family Foundation and she is co-chair of The Institute of Medicine’s Roundtable on the Promotion of Health Equity and Elimination of Health Disparities.
Malia Villegas, Director, National Congress of American Indians Policy Research Center – Dr. Villegas is Sugpiaq/Alutiiq (Alaska Native) with family from Kodiak and Afognak Islands in Alaska and O’ahu and Lana’i in Hawai’i. She is an enrolled member of the Native Village of Afognak in Alaska. Malia earned her master’s degree and doctorate in Culture, Communities, and Education at Harvard University and completed her undergraduate studies at Stanford University. She developed extensive relationships in the South Pacific through her Fulbright-funded dissertation research in Aotearoa/New Zealand and Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, serving as part of a team evaluating the first, national, longitudinal Indigenous education initiative since the 2008 Apology to the Stolen Generations – the Stronger Smarter Learning Communities Project that seeks to improve the leadership culture of schools serving Indigenous Australians.
Lydia Camarillo, Vice-President, Southwest Voter Registration Education Project (SVREP) – Camarillo plays a key role in developing and executing strategies for SVREP’s nonpartisan mobilization efforts. Lydia serves as Chair of the Texas Latino Redistricting Task Force. She serves as Chair of the Texas Senate Latino Caucus and Mexican American Legislative Caucus Civic Engagement Taskforce. Lydia serves on the board of directors for MPMC and ACLU of Texas, Audit and Development Committees. She has served on numerous boards and commissions including on the National Board of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Los Angeles Based City Project, Latino Issues Forum, Monterey County United Way Allocations Committee, Immigrant Rights Coalition for the Central Coast, Santa Cruz County Affirmative Action Commission, Salinas Affirmative Action Committee and the California Task Force on Hispanics and the Civil Service. Lydia has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of California at Santa Cruz.
Moderator
Thomas W. Ross, President Emeritus, The University of North Carolina, Professor of Public Law and Government, School of Government, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Terry Sanford Distinguished Fellow, Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University – Ross joined the School of Government, then the Institute of Government, in 1975 as assistant professor of public law and government. He became a partner in a Greensboro law firm, chief of staff to a member of Congress, a superior court judge, director of the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, executive director of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, president of Davidson College, and the fifth president of the 17-campus University of North Carolina system. He then returned to the School of Government in 2015 as professor of public law and government. Ross earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Davidson and JD from UNC School of Law.
Mildred Thompson (Abstract of Presentation)
- Role of social determinants in impacting health
- Intersections between race, class, ethnicity and health outcomes
- Health disparities on the rise despite advancements in educational attainment
- Advancing a solution based in collective engagement within communities
Malia Villegas (Abstract of Presentation)
- Overview of the history of legislation related to indigenous people and tribal nations
- Introduction of health sovereignty to leverage cultural capital
- Native population gap analysis and health disparities
- Advancing a model that is grounded in equity and sovereignty
Lydia Camarillo (Abstract of Presentation)
- Introduction to redistricting in the United States
- Overview of Latina/o demographics and civic participation
- Southwest Voter Registration Education Project’s grassroots effort to engage Latina/o political participation
The National Health Equity Research Webcast is an interdisciplinary, collaborative effort that builds on the expertise and support of UNC campus partners, community agencies, researchers and practitioners in health and education fields. The webcast appeals to organizations and individuals in North Carolina and across the nation with a focus on health equity, educational achievement and economic stabilization in all areas within our society. Our partners and donors for 2016 are listed below.
Patron Sponsor ($10,000 and above) |
Gillings School of Global Public Health, UNC
|
Co-Sponsor ($5,000 – $9,999) |
Diversity and Multicultural Affairs, UNC Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, UNC |
Supporter($1,000 – $2,499) |
Student Wellness Maya Angelou Center for Health Equity, Wake Forest University |
Special Friend ($500 – $999) |
Center for Health Equity Research, UNC Giselle Corbie-Smith, MD, MSc. Director and Professor of Social Medicine and Medicine, School of Medicine |
Friend($100 – $499) |
Gillings Global Gateway, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health School of Information and Library Science, UNC Department of Biostatistics, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention |
In-Kind Contributors |
School of Social Work, UNC |
Endorsements and Partners |
UNC CHEOP Office, North Carolina Health Career Access Program, UNC Project IMHOTEPNCCU-LCCC Partners Public Heath Training ProgramChancellor’s Science ScholarsHealth Disparities workgroup of the NC State Collaborative on Children and Families |
The 22nd National Health Equity Research Webcast is presented by
UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and its Minority Heath Project; Diversity and Multicultural Affairs
in association with
UNC School of Social Work
Broadcast Chairs
Diane L. Rowley, MD, M.P.H., Professor of the Practice of Public Heath, Department of Maternal and Child Health, Gillings School of Global Public Health, UNC
Victor J. Schoenbach, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, UNC
Broadcast Co-Directors
Kathy Anderson, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Information Technology & Project Planning, Gillings School of Global Public Health, UNC
Elizabeth French, M.A. Assistant Dean for Strategic Initiatives, Gillings School of Public Health, UNC
Broadcast Coordinators
Adriana Shepherd, Business Services Coordinator, Gillings School of Global Public Health, UNC
Sharbari Dey, M.S,W. Assistant Director, Diversity and Multicultural Affairs, UNC
Trinnette Cooper, M.P.H. Coordinator for Diversity Programs and Recruitment, Office of Student Affairs, Gillings School of Global Public Health, UNC
Planning Committee
Danny Bell, American Indian Studies Program, American Studies Department, College of Arts and Sciences, UNC
Melissa Green., M.P.H., Administrative Director for NC TraCS CARES, UNC
Amy Locklear Hertel, Ph.D., Director, American Indian Center, UNC & Clinical Assistant Professor, UNC School of Social Work
William C. (“Bill”) Jenkins., M.S., Ph.D., Co-Director, Minority Health Project, UNC
DeVetta Holman Nash., Ph.D., Assistant Director of Student Wellness and Academic Success, Student Affairs, UNC
Sharon Holmes Thomas., M.P.H., Assistant Dean for Recruitment, Admissions and Financial Aid and Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Social Work, UNC
O.J. McGhee, Manager, Instructional Media Services, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health
Technical Production Team
Video production Producer / Director: O.J. McGhee, Manager, SPH IIS Instructional Media Services
Moderator: Tom Ross, President Emeritus, UNC; Professor of Public Law and Government, School of Government, UNC; Terry Sanford Distinguished Fellow, Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University
Q and A Moderator: Andre Brown, Graduate Student , School of Public Health, UNC;
Production Assistants: Cara Person, Graduate Student, School of Public Health, UNC; Samuel Baxter Graduate Student, School of Public Health, UNC
Camera Operators: Greg Adams, Russell Clemons, Justin Longley and Owen Scott
Floor Director: Cathy Campbell
Audio: Allen Lee
Video Editor: Tom Laney
Live Video Stream Services: Sch1erShot Productions
Marketing and Communications
Program design: Jackson Brantley, Diversity and Multicultural Affairs
UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, Department of Instructional and Information Systems: Kathy Anderson, Ph.D, Associate Dean for Information Technology and Project Planning
Webcast Page Support: Andrew Ochs
Site facilitators and technical coordinators in group viewing sites
Special Thanks
UNC School of Social Work; Business and Finance Office, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health