FORT WAYNE, Ind.—The Center for Integrated Public Health Education and Research (CIPHER) at the University of Saint Francis announces the continuation of its Public Health Fellowship program. This program is partially supported by a $15,000 grant from the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation.
“We are thrilled that CIPHER can expand its fellowship program,” CIPHER Executive Director Dr. Amelia Clark said. “Last year, the two fellows had an impact in the community and grew significantly as students through this opportunity. The firsthand experience in building relationships, learning the importance of collaboration, and how they can use their skills to generate social impact is very hard to teach in the classroom. Being at an organization and seeing the day-to-day work provides a meaningful, real-world experience that complements their course work.”
In 2024, the Public Health Fellowship program at CIPHER engaged two undergraduate students in an eight-week long interdisciplinary learning space to consider the multi-dimensional realities of working in underserved communities. They explored the skills and vocational needs necessary to bring about creative solutions and problem solving to improve public health. With the continued funding from the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation, CIPHER will be able to offer this opportunity to three students. Fellows will work with organizations in the community that address maternal/child health, nutrition and food insecurity, refugees and immigrants and/or access to quality affordable healthcare. These important program areas align with the work of the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation.
CIPHER fosters strong connections among community stakeholders to improve public health in greater Fort Wayne and northern Indiana. Rooted in Catholic social teachings, CIPHER links academic and practice communities in cross-sector collaboration as an incubator for new ideas and strategies to address our state’s public health crisis by providing expert consultation and management of cross-sector initiatives to drive changes in mindsets, practice and policy to achieve improved public health.
For more information, contact CIPHER Executive Director Dr. Amelia Clark at 260-399-7700 ext. 8510 or aclark@sf.edu.
Founded in 1890 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition, the University of Saint Francis offers more than 60 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs through the College of Health Sciences and the College of Arts, Sciences, and Business. In addition to its traditional programs, Saint Francis designs focused curricula for working adults in Fort Wayne, Crown Point and online. USF Downtown houses the music technology program while offering enhanced internship and networking opportunities for students. The University of Saint Francis, recognized as an NAIA Five-Star Champion of Character institution, has 20 athletic programs boasting two individual and four team NAIA national championships. Approximately 1,800 students from a broad geographic region attend Saint Francis.