Richard M. & Maggie C. Daley Building |14 E Jackson Blvd., Chicago, IL 60604 | (312) 362-7302
Health Equity and Social Justice Conference 2022
Thank you to all of those who attended the 2022 HESJ Conference!
We were thrilled to welcome almost 200 public health practitioners, researchers, care providers, DePaul MPH Alumni, and students to Malcolm X College for a one day conference, centered in our theme of belonging. You can read more from our planning committee about our theme here: Crain's Forum on Equitable Health
Reflecting on the conference, it was evident that those of you who attended were inspired and amazed at the range of expertise, but more significantly – invigorated by the opportunity to convene, share ideas, and plan collective action. Please enjoy some highlights below:
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First, we were so pleased to welcome back Dr. Derek Griffith (DePaul Alum!) to open our conference and provide a foundation for us to discuss health equity and structural racism. Click the link below to see a recording of Dr. Griffith's talk:
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In addition to the opening keynote, we incorporated a rapid oral presentation format this year, opening the door to additional speakers in our oral sessions. Feedback from our evaluation included positive comments about this new format and the capacity to hear more presentations in a single session, while also allowing time for question & answers.
Oninyechi Jessica Ogwumkie, MPH (Depaul Alum) presents Communicating the Stories of LGBTQ+ Youth in the Illinois Child Welfare System at the podium
In addition to oral sessions, we held our inaugural networking lunch in conjunction with our poster presentation session. For many attendees, this opportunity to identify partners who were passionate about the same topic was the highlight of the conference.
Dr. Dan Schober, employing a PechaKucha format to his presentation on Youth Voice to Address Gun Violence: A Community Case Study
In keeping with our conference roots, we also held concurrent skill-building sessions to facilitate workforce development opportunities.
In addition to skill-building, our panel option was quite popular this year, offering attendees multi-sector or multidisciplinary perspectives on current health issues.
Panelists (Nikhil Prachand, Yaa Simpson, Blair Aikens, Genese (Genny) Turner, & John Jones) on The State of Health for Blacks in Chicago: Data Brief
Panelists (Lauren Pett & Brittani Kindle) on Addressing Mental Health in Chicago Public Schools
With the goal of community-driven change, we closed the conference with a panel discussing the successful community advocacy to Stop General Iron. This panel, organized by Dr. Jim Bloyd, featured two community activists, Oscar Sanchez and Beria Hampton, who shared key lessons for the audience. The recording of the panel can be found here: https://youtu.be/ksThuHBkrm0
Dr. Jim Bloyd at the podium
From left: Jim Bloyd, Beria Hampton, Oscar Sanchez
We appreciated everyone who helped to disseminate information about the conference, submitted abstracts, presented, and attended – for helping to make this year’s HESJ one to remember!
We owe a debt of gratitude to our student volunteers, some of whom can be seen below. They showed up early, stayed late, and ensured a smooth experience throughout the day. And, a special shout out to our own Graduate Admissions Guru Extraordinaire, Mary Palin, for helping with registration all day!
In our office, the small but mighty team that managed conference logistics included our Program Assistant, Anne Sedlacek. While Anne has moved on to new challenges, her contributions to this event and the start of our academic year were crucial and much appreciated.
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The largest debt of gratitude is undoubtedly owed to our own Manager of Community Partnerships, Emily Tamblyn, who spent day and night executing this conference. This work continued at the event, where Emily was entirely too busy at the conference to pose for a photo. Thank you, Emily!
Emily Tamblyn, MPH, CPPS, managing operations from the registration table
Thank you again to everyone who attended and to all that made it possible!
2022 Health Equity & Social Justice Conference