New AmeriCorps program aims to bolster public health workforce

The College of Public Health is part of a newly launched Ohio State Extension Public Health AmeriCorps program that aims to strengthen the public health workforce pipeline and address community health needs across the state. 

The program will support 74 AmeriCorps members as they engage young people developing projects to address significant public health issues facing their communities. The goal is to address these needs through state and local support, advance more equitable health outcomes for underserved communities, and create pathways for youth interested in careers in public health.

The Ohio State Extension Public Health AmeriCorps program, supported through a five-year, $1.1 million grant, brings together interdisciplinary leaders from the College of Public Health, Ohio State University Extension and the College of Education and Human Ecology’s Department of Human Sciences. The Public Health AmeriCorps program is a collaboration between AmeriCorps, the federal agency for volunteering and national service, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to foster the recruitment and development of the next generation of public health professionals.

Andy Wapner, director of CPH’s Center for Public Health Practice, said it’s critical to build the pipeline for a strong public health workforce. He will support training for the program participants that detail public health approaches for various topics. 

“We want to equip people with the tools to live and work in their own communities,” he said. “Who better to understand those needs than those who grew up and live there and come back and work there.”

Jennifer Beard, assistant dean for strategic initiatives, said this program is an innovative way to engage young people “who are motivated to support the health of their neighborhoods and communities” and reinforce the state’s public health workforce.

“Building that pipeline is part of our mission as a college of public health, and this is a new opportunity to pursue that mission,” she said. 

Emilee Drerup MPH-PEP ’19 and program director for Ohio State Extension Public Health AmeriCorps, said the first year of the project is going to be a lot “of listening and asking questions in the community to really get a picture of what they feel are the pressing public health issues.”

The collaboration and input from various areas across the university “is so important to this project,” she said. Training for new Public Health AmeriCorp members will begin this spring.