Two years ago, we launched the fellowship to foster a "tipping point" towards sound policy and practice changes that would positively and equitably impact the health of Iowa's children. We invited seven health advocates to join us as the inaugural fellows. Here is the release of our Cultivating Change report highlighting their work and our collective impact thus far.

Chaney Yeast shares her journey as part of the first cohort of fellows. Her project focuses on improving children's mental health through a coordinated, collaborative approach.

Mary Nelle Trefz shares her journey as part of the first cohort of fellows. Her project focuses on enhancing how Medicaid delivers care to kids to improve their health now and as adults .

The first piece of advice we are given when we decide to try creating system-level change is “you need to form a coalition." And if you ask, “What does it need to look like?” your answer is, "Get all the key stakeholders around the table." This is not enough.

Dawn Martinez Oropeza shares her journey as part of the first cohort of fellows. Her project focused on advocating for more inclusive policies and practices in school districts to address the mental health needs of Latino students.

Becky Miles-Polka shares her journey as part of the first cohort of fellows. Her project focused on accessing Medicaid reimbursement for home assessment and remediation to improve health outcomes for children with chronic asthma.