Our Crowdfunding Groups
Our 2018 campaign is underway! Visit bit.ly/berkeleysph to donate!
Thank you to all our amazing donors last year for the 2017 Diversity Scholarship Campaign! This year's campaign will run until 2/23 so please encourage people you know to donate. If we exceed our goal of $10,000 to fund 5 scholarships, each additional $2,000 will go towards another student receiving a scholarship. Don't forget to share the bit.ly/berkeleysph via text, social media and e-mail so others you know can contribute.
Diversity benefits any field, but it is particularly vital in public health. Despite major advances in public health in the past few decades, disparities in health and health care persist in the United States. Racial and ethnic minority groups in the United States are at a greater risk of being uninsured, lacking access to care, and experiencing worse health outcomes from preventable and treatable conditions. Research has shown that a culturally competent public health workforce is needed to address health-related issues in diverse populations. And the United States and particularly our state of California, are growing more diverse all the time.
The development of a diverse public health workforce must start in the schools of public health. According the the Sullivan Commission on Diversity in the Healthcare Workforce, three overlying principles will lead to diversity in health care:
One of the values of the UC Berkeley School of Public Health is “Strength through Diversity” and the School community embraces diversity in education, research, and service. The School's URM representation has improved dramatically in recent years and the School community is working hard to create an inclusive equitable environment. But the student body is still not as diverse as the population of California, particularly the Latino/a population. We are asking alumni and friends of the School to do their part to ensure that students are receiving the support they need to thrive at the School of Public Health and in their public health careers.
PHAA Diversity Scholarships
If you donate to our crowdfunding campaign, you will be supporting two underrepresented minority students, each with a one-year, $5 thousand scholarship for the next academic year. If we substantially exceed our goal, we may be able to fund one or more additional scholarships. One huge hurdle to achieving diversity in education is the increasing rate of tuition and the many costs associated with being student. High costs can have an even greater impact on underrepresented students and financial aid can be a deciding factor for many. We want to ensure money is not a deterrent in pursuing a degree for those who want to pursue a career in public health. Our association has given out six of these scholarships in the past, and we have seen them help students succeed.
About Us
The Public Health Alumni Association Board of Directors is a group of alumni volunteers who represent all alumni of the UC Berkeley School of Public Health. We help alumni support the mission of the School and strengthen personal and professional relationships among public health alumni and students. One of our particular goals is to support diversity in the field of public health and ensure an inclusive, welcoming climate at the School for all of our students.
The team of board members working in support of this campaign are:
The team of School of Public Health staff working in support of this campaign are:
Make a Difference
We need your help to revive our annual PHAA Diversity Scholarship program! Together we can make a real difference for these students, who will then go on to make a difference in diverse communities in the state of California, in our nation, and around the world. Our alumni community is more than 15,000 members strong and growing each year. If each of us give even a small amount we will easily meet our goal.
We will list your name in a PHAA Diversity Scholarship honor roll that will run in the March issue of Berkeley Health Monthly, the enewsletter for alumni and friends of the UC Berkeley School of Public Health.
In addition to listing your name in our BHM honor roll, we will send you a handwritten thank you note from one of our board members.
In addition to listing your name in our BHM honor roll, we will thank you personally via the School of Public Health's Twitter or Facebook accounts.
In addition to listing your name in our BHM honor roll, we will give you a one-year complimentary subscription to the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, which is 12 issues of the evidence-based health and wellness newsletter.
In addition to listing your name in our BHM honor roll, we will reserve VIP seating for you and a guest at all 2017 Dean's Speaker Series events. http://sph.berkeley.edu/news-events/deans-speaker-series
In addition to listing your name in our BHM honor roll, we will invite you and a guest to the School of Public Health's 2017 Scholarship Tea, which brings together faculty, students, donors, and alumni to recognize student scholarship recipients and the donors whose generosity has made the awards possible. This event is on September 28, 2017. You will also be invited to a reception with Dean Stefano Bertozzi and other guests following the event.
