Our Monthly News & Updates |
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Produced by Jeffrey Field, Department of Family Medicine & Community Health at the University of Kansas Medical Center. |
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Welcome!
We are thrilled to welcome you to the Communities Organizing to Promote Equity (COPE) family.
What is COPE? Why is it important?
In this video, Christina Pacheco, Project Director, and Dr. Sarah Kessler, Ph.D., MPH, Project Lead and Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Kansas Medical Center, talk about how we plan to build trust and enhance equity to respond to community needs that have been historically overlooked in our participating 20 Kansas counties.
Stay in touch through our monthly newsletter
This newsletter series serves as a place where we can connect and learn about each other. It will evolve with the COPE project. Content highlights the following: community engagement activities, member spotlight, noteworthy adventures, success stories, motivational quotes and more.
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We are only as strong as our community. Share this with friends and colleagues in your network so they can learn about COPE.
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Our team has been busy! We have officially launched a two-week training with community health workers.
We kicked off the very first Learning Collaborative meeting with Local Health Equity Action Team leads and community health worker supervisors. In this meeting, we explained roles and responsibilities as well as ongoing support and trainings (images on your left). Stay tuned!
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Hi! I’m Christina Pacheco, JD, MPH, (she/her) and I am the Project Director for the Communities Organizing to Promote Equity (COPE) Project in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Kansas Medical Center. I am Quechua and Cherokee. I graduated from William Mitchell College of Law in 2008 with a Juris Doctor (JD) and from the University of Kansas Medical Center (KUMC) in 2016 with a Master of Public Health (concentration in Social and Behavioral Health). I am currently pursuing an Interdisciplinary PhD in Bioinformatics and Public Administration from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. I have worked in the field of public health for over 10 years, in the field of policy and law for more than 12 years, and in the field
of social justice and racial reconciliation for more than 20 years.
I am a community based participatory researcher whose interests focus on health inequities faced by Indigenous and Latin@ communities. I am extremely passionate about working with historically resilient communities to address the social and structural impediments that making living holistically healthy lives more difficult. In my spare time, I enjoy spending time with my two nephews, hiking with my dog Frida and consuming local art.
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Hi! My name is Mary Ricketts, B.A. I am the CEO of Turning Point Training & Development, a firm that specializes in leadership training and development to help organizations meet their goals. I currently serve as a Local Health Equity Action Team
Advisor for COPE. I also serve as leadership support for RADxUP, facilitating a series of conversations among Local Health Equity Action Teams
and community members. This role also includes moderating RADxUP Worksite webinars with a special focus on understanding and relieving barriers to testing and vaccination. I began working on COVID-19 related projects in 2020 with the Kansas Leadership Center and Kansas Beats the Virus project, facilitating more than 100 projects. In the community, I serve as the Board President for Innovate Her Inc. and Board Chair for Kansas City Kansas Community College Foundation.
I enjoy spending a great deal of time with my children and grandchildren when I am not serving on local community boards and committees.
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I am Vicki Collie-Akers, Ph.D., MPH. I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Population Health at the University of Kansas Medical Center. In 2020, I was named the Professor of Public Health Practice for KUMC-Kansas City. My work focuses on creating and examining the impact of cross- or multi-sector partnerships to improve health. A focus of this work has been establishing partnerships between academic and governmental public health to strengthen public health practice, provide learning and training opportunities for faculty, staff, and students, and develop applied collaborative research and evaluation opportunities. I also have an extensive history of research and evaluation projects aimed at understanding the impact of community-based initiatives on chronic disease and health equity.
I am (almost) a lifelong Kansan and am raising my three kids in Lawrence. My deep roots in Kansas drive my passion for working with community members to build healthy communities in Kansas.
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Have you seen a vaccination campaign from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment lately on your social media and local TV stations? If so, you might have seen Dr. Allen Greiner, M.D., MPH, featured along with other medical professionals and Kansas residents in this "Don't Wait Until It's Too Late" campaign aiming to reduce vaccine disparities and increase vaccine uptake in Kansas.
In this COPE project, Dr. Greiner serves on the patient care provider team and is one of the Southeast regional liaisons. If you are interested in learning more about the vaccination campaign, visit the website here. |
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Each month we will feature a quote that inspires and motivates. Thank you to Christina Pacheco, who brought this quote to our attention.
"May the sun bring you new energy by day.
May the moon softly restore you by night.
May the rain wash away your worries.
May the breeze blow new strength into your being.
May you walk gently through the world and know its beauty all the days of your life."
May this quote sustain your spirit as you continue to devote yourself to improving equity in your community during this challenging time.
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February marks the commemoration of Black History Month and Lunar New Year. We want to take the opportunity to share some events that honor the history and traditions important to our community. |
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Visit the University of Kansas Medical Center's Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Black History Month page to learn more about virtual events, ways to support Black-owned businesses and how you can get involved.
Image source: The University of Kansas Medical Center's Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
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Lunar New Year is celebrated by billions of people around the world and many members in our cherished communities. Learn more about the Year of the Tiger and activities you can do virtually and in-person at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art here.
Image source: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
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