ST. PAUL — Project REACH (Rural Experts Advancing Community Health), a year-long health policy and leadership training program for community leaders in rural Minnesota, is now recruiting its next cohort of participants. The first year of the program has been a success, training community leaders in Grand Rapids, Side Lake and Montevideo.
Project REACH is a joint initiative of the University of Minnesota Rural Health Program through the Office of Academic Clinical Affairs and the Clinical and Translational Science Institute.
Goals for Project REACH participants are to:
Participants must be 18 years of age or older and working or living in rural Minnesota. They should want to improve health in their community by effectively communicating with policymakers, and be committed to racial equity and social justice in rural Minnesota.
- Identify a local challenge related to health and well- being, and develop policy analysis and communication skills to address it.
- Build leadership skills in equity, diversity and inclusion to improve health equity.
- Connect with issue- or skills-specific mentors, experts at the University of Minnesota, and other partners in Minnesota related to the local problem of focus for each participant.
- Engage in effective problem framing and policy communication related to a health problem in a local community by developing a policy proposal and sharing it with relevant decision-makers.
Upon completion of the program, Project REACH participants will receive a $1,200 stipend and a certificate of completion. Additional information and application details are available at https://ctsi.umn.edu/training/project-reach .
