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Supporting a Health Equity Workforce

The annual Health Equity Leadership Institute (HELI) is a weeklong research and leadership immersion program focused on increasing the number of investigators, particularly underrepresented racial/ethnic (UR) investigators, engaged in health disparities research to achieve health equity. HELI reflects an important academic consortium between the UW-Madison Collaborative Center for Health Equity (CCHE) and the Maryland Center for Health Equity (M-CHE) at the University of Maryland School of Public Health. HELI targets junior faculty in an effort to increase the likelihood of their promotion and tenure at health science research institutions.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, HELI is not planned for 2023.

What people say…

This is more than a training, more than a workshop. Hearing everyone’s experiences…it makes you feel better. I was never able to explain my problems. Now I have a cohort. This is more like developing a family. I’m really looking forward to working with you in the future. We know each other as human beings rather than colleagues.
– 2019 alumni


HELI allowed time for active reflection in a safe place, a time for affirmation, encouragement, and development of relationships. This program does not compare to anything else I have attended.
– 2018 alumni

I wanted to say before I forget, what the “secret sauce” is; What distinguishes [HELI] is the intentional and deliberate nature of intentional reflection. The intentional pre-survey and pre-work we had to do in advance. We hung out every night. The reflective nature is the secret sauce. You take us out of our silos where we’re all machines and let us just be. I said I needed to recharge when I came here. This is a space of collective strength and support. The care that was put into the exercises.
– 2016 alumni


Thank you. It’s been great to be in this space. I said I needed allies. You guys are more than allies, you’re accomplices. I found accomplices here.
– 2016 alumni