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ASTHO Announces Sixth Developing Executive Leaders in Public Health Cohort ARLINGTON, VA — Today, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) announced its sixth cohort of Developing Executive Leaders in Public Health (DELPH). This highly competitive program began in 2021 and continues to strengthen the leadership capacity of mid- to senior-level governmental public health professionals. “I am thrilled to welcome the sixth cohort of the DELPH Program,” says Avia Mason, ASTHO vice president for leadership and learning. “This group of 20 scholars brings exceptional dedication and passion to the work of public health, and we are honored to support their journey as they strengthen their leadership, expand their impact, and improve the health of their communities.” Cohort six scholars include: Faisal Adam, DC Health Department Vina Ayuyu, Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation Misty Carney, Maryland Department of Health Colette Cobb, Office of the California Surgeon General Angela Cochran, St. Mary's County Health Department Jessie Fernandes, Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services Tynisha George, Chicago Department of Public Health Ethan Greenblatt, St. Louis County Department of Public Health Gabby Hadly, Snohomish County Health Department Shebra Hall, Delaware Division of Public Health Brandon Horvath, Philadelphia Department of Public Health Halana Kaleel, Austin Public Health Markeeta Keyes, City of Minneapolis - Health - Green Career Exploration Aracely Macias, New Jersey Department of Health Chelsea Moriarty Coffield, Harris County Public Health Natasha Pickens Shumpert, Jefferson County Department of Health Dipa Shah, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Nutrition and Physical Activity Program Jamilia Sherls, Washington State Department of Health Iliana Siarmalis, Maryland Department of Health Tenneh Turner-Warren, Arizona Dept of Health Services ASTHO continues its commitment to developing, elevating, and modeling strong leadership for the next generation of emerging public health leaders. At a time when public health demands courageous vision, strategic action and collaborative strength, programs like DELPH are more essential than ever. Through an innovative, cohort-model, participants will deepen their leadership identity, enhance their communication, and grow their ability to positively influence their organizations. Each participant is matched with an executive coach, accountability partner and DELPH team member for personalized, transformative leadership development. “Morehouse School of Medicine is proud to continue its partnership with ASTHO in facilitating the DELPH program,” says Sandra Harris-Hooker, senior vice president for external affairs and innovation and interim director of the Satcher Health Leadership Institute (SHLI) at Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM). “This ongoing collaboration between ASTHO and MSM’s SHLI advances our institution vision of ‘Leading the creation and advancement of health equity to achieve health justice.’ Together, we are equipping and empowering individuals to step into national and global arenas where strong, equity-centered public health leadership is needed most.” With support from the CDC, the success of the DELPH program’s more than 100 alumni demonstrates how strengthened leadership translates into stronger public health systems as they take on the pressing challenges facing our communities. Cohort six scholars will kick off their programming on December 8 in Arlington, VA. ASTHO Press Release Boilerplate website yes

Six DELPH scholars give their insights to learn more about how the data modernization initiative and DEI intersect with public health.

Exploring the Effect of Public Health Crises on Health Equity Leadership ASTHO, association of state and territorial health officials, public health, social determinants of health, centers for disease control, public health crisis, health disparities, health crises, health leaders, health departments, public health professionals, health leadership, achieve health equity, advancing health equity, health equity, public health crises, public health leadership, covid 19, covid-19 pandemic, public health leaders, health equity leader ASTHO Staff ASTHO | DELPH scholars reflect on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on public health leadership. Health equity is at the center of the Diverse Executives Leading in Public Health (DELPH) program. ASTHO, in partnership with the Morehouse School of Medicine’s Satcher Health Leadership Institute, challenges DELPH scholars to reflect on what it takes to bring this equity work to their own health departments. Given the unique circumstances presented over the past few years by the COVID-19 pandemic, ASTHO reached out to a few of our DELPH scholars to discuss what type of leader this moment in public health requires and their experience in health equity leadership during the pandemic. In this blog post, DELPH scholars Ryan Natividad, Sounivone Phanthavong, Krystle White, and Felicia Veasey contemplate whether the times produce the leader or the leader produces the times. This conversation continues a discussion held with the same scholars in a post about elevating community voices through health equity leadership. KRYSTLE WHITE: I recently found a quote from Joaquin de Castro, co-founder of MindReform, that stated, “Great leadership arises through the proper action at the proper time,” and I couldn’t agree more. When it comes to being a public health leader and, more importantly, a health equity leader, what is impacting our community the most shapes our efforts. In a picture-perfect world, certain health crisis interventions would not exist if it wasn’t for health leaders responding with innovative tools to combat the issue. Without the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the way we responded to certain underserved communities would not have been as robust and impactful. The pandemic, along with the layered issue of medical mistrust, forced us to be innovative in our approach when attempting to remedy social determinants of health for certain communities where the pandemic further exacerbated these engrained issues. We had to adjust or redevelop local policies and interventions during this time, as what had worked in the past no longer served those impacted. Effective leaders are tried and tested and can push past difficulties and power forward during some of the tensest times in our history. FELICIA VEASEY: Who I am as a leader now versus who I was before COVID-19 are different. Three years ago, I would have never thought that I could or would serve as the COVID-19 Operations Director for 11 counties while maintaining my role as the community systems director. However, seeing the need of the community, its correlation to chronic diseases, and those most impacted by COVID-19, fueled my desire to lead. I saw the need to lead, in part to speak up for those not around the table making decisions. The pandemic stretched me professionally and spiritually. The ever-changing COVID-19 environment birthed abilities and skills that I didn’t know I possessed. RYAN NATIVIDAD: “Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. We saw a need that needed to be filled, and we stepped in to help.” This Benet Wilson quote captures the ardent spirit of my current millennial generation. Among previous generations, millennials are considered the unluckiest generation after surviving various recessions (i.e., the dot-com bubble recession, the Great Recession, and the COVID-19 recession) and powering through the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to these circumstances, I feel that millennials are the “Resilient Generation.” Whatever we endure, we keep our heads high and work towards the future we want. SOUNIVONE PHANTHAVONG: Leaders must be responsive to the environment and conditions in which they are operating. Promoting health equity requires not only an understanding of the structural, social, political, and environmental conditions of health but also the root causes of such conditions. Even with these understandings, well-structured plans are still subject to infinite variables. A leader should be ready to adapt to changes and address emerging needs. A leader working with the times considers what is needed, works towards growth, leverages strengths, identifies opportunities for improvement, provides responsive support, and builds capacity. A leader should aid in addressing conditions that impact the time it takes to make progress towards achieving health equity. A leader who aims to produce the times may face unanticipated challenges that will hinder their ability to achieve their desired outcomes. Systemic issues have limited health equity, with many issues rooted in historical and intentional oppression. These systemic issues require systemic changes. A health equity leader must prepare to work within these systemic conditions to produce macro- and micro-level outcomes. Large Padding 3 Related Content-Blog - DELPH desciption - cake layer website yes

Two DELPH scholars from cohort one reflect on their completion of the 10-month program and discuss how learning about one’s own leadership style is critical for success.

Four DELPH participants answer the question, “Which is more important for leadership in health equity: to influence the community to follow the leader’s vision or to influence the community to follow their own vision?”

An interview with DELPH scholars Halina Palacios and Nathifa Miller about the importance of developing a strong leadership style, advice for future public health leaders, and using the DiSC Personality Assessment.

A Q&A with DELPH participants James Bell III and Sandy Noel about their experiences in the program and why it is so important to develop your own brand as a leader.

ASTHO invited five DELPH scholars to provide examples of how community and diversity shape their leadership within their local health department and share recommendations for a more inclusive workplace.

ASTHO interview with T Benicio Gonzales and Shelley J. Lee, members of the first DELPH cohort, about their leadership journey.

An interview with Luci Longoria and Lt. Commander Traci Murray, members of the DELPH program's first cohort.

The Key Role of Cross-Sector Partnerships in Navigating Barriers Keon Lewis Community partnerships are critical to public health's mission to promote optimal health for all — learn more. Public health departments’ mission and vision statements often share certain values and goals aimed at improving the public’s well-being. Rather than just reactively responding to immediate health threats as they come, public health departments aim to take a more proactive approach through strategies that prevent the future spread of diseases, injury, or other incidences of harm. These actions support their visions of creating communities where all residents can thrive and achieve their full health potential. Strong community partnerships are critical to public health departments’ ability to fulfill their goals. Recognizing this, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation introduced the Culture of Health Framework in 2015. As a leading national philanthropic organization focused on dismantling barriers to optimal health for all, the framework’s foundation is built upon the following action areas: Making Health a Shared Value. Creating Health. More Equitable Communities. Strengthening Integration of Health Systems and Services. Fostering Cross-Sector Collaboration. The COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath underscored the factors that created challenges to health outcomes for underserved communities; it also demonstrated the importance of sustaining strong cross-sector partnerships. Public health’s ability to align its goals with the community it serves is vital to efforts to save lives. This alignment allows public health departments to leverage the diverse resources and lived experiences that community partners bring. Recognizing the unique concomitant relationship that it has with government funding, public health departments are now going to have to pivot their strategies to achieve their missions. As public health departments experience budget and personnel cuts, its ability to promote optimal health for all and mitigate the social determinants of health is now even more reliant upon the strength of collaborative partnerships. The Public Health Paradox Public health has always been a component of our nation’s health care system, which primarily reflects specific health issues that have impacted our communities. Rather than focusing on the foundational issues that exacerbate these long-term gaps in underserved communities, government systems often allocate funding based on specific diseases or chronic health issues impacting community health. Although diseases and chronic health issues are significant public health elements that need to be addressed, there are significant nonmedical factors that play just as vital a role in influencing community health outcomes. Identified by the World Health Organization (WHO) and adopted by CDC as the social determinants of health, these variables — which include elements such as social and community construct, economic stability, and education access — have become the central driving force of public health. “The Public Health Funding Paradox,” an article from Sage Journals, offers a great perspective on how an intriguing paradox has been created due to this relationship between public health and government systems. The article underscores the complexity of governmental funding that helps to advance public health strategies while there still exist harmful policies that create barriers for certain communities. The Flint water crisis in Michigan demonstrated this paradox. Flint citizens experienced lead poisoning and death from Legionnaires’ Disease, underscoring how a community’s ability to thrive can be quickly impacted by economic difficulty and leadership decisions made by the accompanying government. The Power of Partnership Public health has long had to combat a barrage of stigmas and policy hurdles. Even at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, public health departments were not only in contention against the virus but also against the influence of viral misinformation that questioned their practices, strategies, and purposes. Despite these barriers, the nation witnessed the power of true cross-sector partnerships. Health care and grassroot organizations quickly found common ground to help address the needs of underserved populations. From addressing food insecurity to mental health and transportation barriers, communities successfully pivoted toward hope and found ways to save lives. Nonprofit organizations also created innovative and impactful peer-to-peer funding models that enabled them to fulfill their missions in spite of budget cuts. During this time, community health workers became a vital public health resource. As conduits between departments and local communities, community health workers became a necessary element to re-reestablishing trust in systems and care. Although the work of frontline workers and support staff served a critical role in mitigating the future spread of COVID-19, advocates and allies at the grassroots level also played an invaluable role in promoting health for all. As “The Public Health Funding Paradox” demonstrated, public health departments are only as effective as their accompanying government systems. If the leadership within these respective systems fails to align and empathize with their public health counterparts, then as a community we inevitably repeat a vicious cycle that results in poor health outcomes. Identifying Alternative Routes Cross-sector partnerships serve a vital role in enabling public health systems to better serve their communities. Budget cuts and stricter policies have created barriers for local and statewide agencies, academic institutions, and nonprofit organizations. The ability to develop essential personnel, continue pertinent research, and utilize mitigating practices have been inhibited by these barriers. It has become increasingly evident that, rather than focusing on reactive strategies, public health must go upstream and address the social needs of our communities. With cuts to funding, public health systems have to do more with less, making it more difficult to address diseases and chronic health problems. Working upstream to address root causes of health outcomes is one way to better leverage thinner resources. As our public health systems continue to work diligently to monitor, support, and mitigate community health barriers, there is still more research needed to explore the most effective cross-sector partnership frameworks. Public health’s efforts must remain intentional in developing comprehensive health advisory coalitions, leadership development cohorts, civic and community engagement projects, and paradigm shifts in academic curricula. The leaders and changemakers of tomorrow require growth in their competencies today. Cross-sector partnerships must continue to build their foundations upon systems of trust and transparency. Public and private health systems, the social sector, and other community stakeholders can partner to improve the population’s overall well-being while simultaneously achieving a mutually beneficial “social return on investment.” Public health’s ability to align with the achievement of optimal health for all requires more than just serving on the front line when a crisis occurs — it is critical that these departments must continuing enhancing their collaborative partnerships and community engagement. article yes

Six DELPH scholars share personal reflections about LGBTQ+ identity, representation at work, and how allyship within public health leadership is critical when responding to a crisis.