The university has partnered with the St. Louis Integrated Health Network to improve health in the local Black community.
An initiative co-led by Diana Parra Perez, an instructor in Art & Sciences’ new Program in Public Health & Society and assistant professor at the Brown School, aims to improve the health and lives of residents in the St. Louis Promise Zone that includes parts of North St. Louis City and North St. Louis County.
In partnership with the St. Louis Integrated Health Network, Parra Perez and others will work to promote community gardens, expand food pantries, and implement new pedestrian safety measures, among other steps. The effort is supported by a five-year, $3.8 million Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“What sets this project apart is the strong partnership between academic institutions and community organizations,” Parra Perez said. “The community knows what they need. We’re just supporting their efforts.”
Parra Perez and other participants in the REACH program were recently featured in Re-Imagining Equity Through Collective Action, a video produced by APHA TV, a service of the American Public Health Association.
