Tag : Leadership

5 lessons learned in building the village of support for early-grade reading

02/10/2020 215

In 2012, our community put a stake in the ground, united around ensuring children in our community can read by the end of third grade. The rallying cry centered on eliminating barriers to learning for young students and bringing to light the real struggle that some kids face when it comes to literacy. From our work, here are lessons of what it takes to build the village of support for each child, while still staying true to the mission of “why."

Community

The best professional advice I have ever received

12/09/2019 309

As I embark on the second cohort of Mid-Iowa Health Foundation’s HealthConnect Fellowship, I reflect back on moments in my career journey that have been pivotal for me. Moments that have given me the courage to do new things, courage to continue forward when challenges arise, and courage to take a new direction. Here are three of my most pivotal moments.

Community

A fellow's perspective: Getting to do the work we should be doing

11/25/2019 297

Remarks shared by Fellow Andrea Dencklau at the HealthConnect Fellowship Celebration on November 18, 2019. Andrea shares what the fellowship experience has meant to her and the hope it brings that we can address critical issues in our community.

Advocacy

Who's at your table?

11/13/2019 169

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.

Advocacy

In a battle too important to lose, the journey of being an influential leader continues

08/23/2019 228

Reflecting on four skills which were vital to helping move the children’s mental health policy in Iowa forward with substantial success during the 2019 legislative session

For all children in Central Iowa to have equal opportunity for good health, greater attention and resources must be directed to addressing the fundamental causes of poor health for children and youth. These fundamental causes, or social determinants, of health are often largely impacted by public and private, organization, local, state and federal policies and practices.

The Mid-Iowa Health Foundation HealthConnect Fellowship strives to engage and build the capacity of key professionals working to improve social determinants of children's health, and help them grow as public policy change agents to improve children's health in central Iowa.

This HealthConnect Fellowship Blog is intended to share learnings from the Fellows and other national experts with our broader community of children's health advocates.