Friday, May 9, 2025
5/9/2025
Community Health Worker Training Program - Project Abstract – HRSA CHWTP 22-124 Project Title: The Chicago CHW H.E.R.O Project Organizational Name: UIC Office of Community Engagement and Neighborhood Health Partnerships (OCEAN-HP) Address: 818 S. Wolcott, Suite 803, Chicago, Illinois 60612 Project Director Name: Angela Ellison Contact Phone Number: 312-996-4656, fax 321-996-3848 Email Address: aellison@uic.edu Website Address: oceanhp.uic.edu Funding Request: $1,000,000 annually “Be the change that you wish to see in the world” - Mahatma Gandhi The UIC Office of Community Engagement and Neighborhood Health Partnership (OCEAN-HP) and nine committed partners unanimously agree that Community Health Workers (CHWs) are the people who can make a significant contribution to the “change we want to see in the world.” UIC OCEAN-HP is a department of the University of Illinois. Over the past 25 years, our department has demonstrated the ability to establish new programs, engage populations displaying negative social determinates of health, and secure partnerships across medical providers and social service organizations. The department and the nine organizations and/or departments who have collaborated on this initiative have an extensive history of training and working with Community Health Workers in Illinois. The nine partners involved in this project are organizations and/or departments internal and external to the University of Illinois Health Science System (UI Health). The Chicago CHW Helping, Educating, Resourcing, Opportunity (H.E.R.O) Project includes the training, support, and preparation of Community Health Workers to increase the CHWs workforce in five communities within the Chicagoland area. These communities are predominantly African American and Latinx. Further, historically, these communities experienced high health disparities and were some of the hardest hit by the COVID 19 pandemic. The target communities are Brighton Park, West Lawn, Greater Englewood, Auburn Gresham, and South Shore. The goals of this collaborative are to: A. Expand the Public Health Workforce by training and supporting 55 new and 20 existing CHWs annually. B. Increase 90% of the skills of new and existing CHW by expanding on the primary CHW curriculum offered by the training institution. This will include other disease-specific and relative training on public health topics that impact health equity and emergency response related to the potential public health crisis. C. Provide opportunities for 30% of the new CHW completing the training programs to gain work experience through authorized apprenticeship programs D. Increase the skills of existing CHWs through leadership training and mentorship programs. A minimum of 80% will be enrolled in the Leadership training component. E. 100% of the CHWs completing the entire training components (the basic certification and enhanced) will be trained to be a part of an integrated health care team. This will ensure they are prepared to address health equity within the target communities and within existing health care systems operating in target communities.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).