2021 Series

Sizzling Summer Series 2021: Becoming an Anti-Racist Public Health System

Session 1 - The Role of Identity in Health Outcomes

This session explores concepts related to identity and the role it plays in population health. The presenter discusses how identities are formed, the social and cultural constructs of identity, social identity theory, and how one’s identity can impact health outcomes.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize how our identity is formed
• Discuss identity in a social and cultural construct
• Explore Social Identity Theory
• Discuss ways to provide responsive public health and healthcare services

Presenter: Derrick K. Willis, MPA

Derek K. Willis, MPA, is the Director of Iowa’s University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCED), Center for Disabilities and Development (CDD), at the University of Iowa. Prior to joining CDD, Derrick served as Director of Urban Mission at the Institute for Human Development, Missouri’s UCED, at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He has more than 35 years of experience working at local not-for-profits, state government, and higher education. His career has centered on at-risk youth and families from diverse backgrounds living in urban communities. Derrick has built a body of work focusing on mental health, substance and alcohol abuse and violence prevention, education, employment, and cultural competency.

Session 2 - Micro/Macro-aggressions and Implicit Bias

Implicit bias plays a significant role in the plethora of health and health care inequities in the United States, and as such, our attention is needed. From this session, you will gain new recognition and understanding of implicit bias, as well as microaggressions in the workplace and in the public health services we provide. Linkages between implicit bias, micro/macro-aggressions, structural oppression, and health outcomes are made.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize dominant culture biases (and micro- and macro-aggressions) that may impede effectiveness in providing services that enhance wellbeing and health equity.
• Name examples of implicit bias.
• Explain strategies to prevent micro- and macro-aggressive comments, behaviors and/or situations.
• Explain the link between micro- and macro-aggressions, and structural oppression.
• Explain the link between micro- and macro-aggressions, and health outcomes

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Presenter: Alicia Sanchez, MBA

Alicia Sanchez is a passionate advocate and social entrepreneur committed to guiding leaders and organizations to foster a culture of inclusion. Alicia serves at the Assistant Dean of Students and Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Wichita State University (WSU) and is the principal consultant for Affinity Connections, a diversity, equity, inclusion consulting company. Her on-campus service commitments include, serving on the President’s Diversity Council, First-Generation Coordinating Council, various scholarship selection committees, on-campus advisor for Sigma Lambda Beta International Fraternity, Incorporated, the Hispanic American Leadership Organization, and is a 2014-2015 WSU Leadership Academy Fellow.

Session 3 - Structural Vs. Individual Inequalities

Learning Objectives:

• Clarify the definition of racism and differentiate between racist, non-racist, and anti-racist
• Examine how social inequities are based on societal structure rather than on individuals
• Consider the significance of intersectionality as it relates to race, class, gender, and other identities
• Explore the legacy of racism and the connection between historical and current oppression
• Compare transformative and transactional change 

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Presenter: Julie Reid, PhD

Dr. Julie Reid is from the University of Southern Mississippi, where she is Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education in the College of Arts and Sciences, Associate Professor of Sociology in the School of Social Science and Global Studies, and Affiliate Faculty in the Women’s and Gender Studies program and in the Center for Black Studies. She received her Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Texas at Austin, and her teaching and research interests focus on social inequities and the intersections of race, gender, social class, and nation, particularly in educational contexts. Her previous research has explored how teachers in Latin America engaged with national educational reform policies that mandated cultural and gender equity. She has also done research in the U.S. to examine college students’ perceptions of hookups, dates, and behavioral expectations related to gender and environmental settings. Prior to entering academia, her work experience included jobs with the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Peace Corps in Malawi.

Session 4 - Empathy, Privilege, and Cultural Humility

Learning Objectives:

• Increase awareness and understanding of cultural humility concepts
• Enhance understanding of leadership through empathy and privilege
• Enhance ability to engage in transformative and difficult conversations about equity
• Discuss tools and practices for addressing health inequities 
• Identify opportunities (internally and externally) to build a community of practice and support while addressing cultural humility

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Presenter: Jewel Stafford, MSW

Session 5 - Approaching Practice with an Anti-Racist Lens

Learning Objectives:

• Highlight the legal underpinnings of racial health inequities we see today
• Distinguish racism from bias
• Characterize the three levels of racism
• Describe the frameworks for understanding racism's impact on the everyday practice of public health
• Identify strategies for initiating and sustaining equity-focused individual and organizational shifts

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Presenters: 

• Montrece Ransom JD, MPH
• Dawn Hunter, JD, MPH
• Priscilla Keith, JD, MPH