Project Abstract
Introduction and Rationale
This project seeks to integrate critical adult education with behavioral health and epidemiology to advance health equity and justice. We argue that public and population health professional training must transcend traditional competency-based education to include sociocultural and sociopolitical contexts. This approach will enable learners to critically assess their worldviews and the role of their professions in societal inequities, fostering a learning environment where adults are respected, engaged, and self-directed.
Objectives
Our goals are to refine educational frameworks that promote anti-racism, justice, and empowerment in health professions education, and to encourage collaborative learning and knowledge exchange to further health equity and social justice.
Methods
A scoping review of literature on the incorporation of social justice and anti-racist practices into public health curricula will be conducted using the PRISMA-ScR framework. Findings will be shared with a Community of Practice (CoP) to enhance skill application and quality in professional settings. The CoP will foster a network of individuals committed to enriching practice through sustained learning. Community partners, who will provide compensated input, will be included to ensure the curriculum reflects diverse perspectives, challenging traditional academic-led design.
Significance
The project will benefit from an interdisciplinary approach that values diverse knowledge, shared power, and engaged education. By focusing on meaningful evaluation practices, we aim to counteract epistemological violence—the harm done when research attributes health risks to marginalized groups based on essentialist views. Instead, we will consider the broader socio-political contexts that contribute to health behaviors, thereby preventing harm and fostering more accurate and respectful understanding.
Expected Outcomes
We anticipate producing dissemination products and a proposal for continued research. This project aims to situate learners in contexts that reflect lived experiences and anti-oppressive practices, promoting interdisciplinary research that bridges public health, critical adult education, and anti-oppressive pedagogies for transformative learning. Our efforts will address gaps in current research, particularly the lack of anti-oppressive, critical adult education perspectives in public health literature.
Conclusion
Education is a critical component of public health, yet there is a notable lack of critical pedagogy recognizing its social and political dimensions. This project challenges the perception of public health as an objective field, advocating for education that acts as a transformative practice. By acknowledging the political functions of public health education, we aim to transform it into a liberating force, thereby reconnecting learning with freedom. This interdisciplinary research will fill the void in literature, positioning education as a pivotal element in reshaping public health paradigms.
Investigators
Dr. Leah Neubauer
Dr. Neubauer is an Associate Professor of Preventive Medicine in the Division of Public Health Practice at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, contributing to interdisciplinary programs as Affiliated Faculty at the Institute for Global Health and the Program of African Studies, and as Ad-Hoc Faculty in The Graduate School.
As Associate Director of the Program in Public Health (PPH) and Director of Educational Advancement and Accreditation, she collaborates with the Institute for Public Health and Medicine (IPHAM) and the Center for Education in Health Sciences (CEHS). She leads strategic educational and accreditation efforts for the PPH’s twelve degree tracks.
A national education leader, Dr. Neubauer focuses on curriculum development for health professions and sciences. As a critical educational methodologist and team scientist, she conducts global research on educational program development, implementation, evaluation, and dissemination. She employs multidisciplinary, theory-driven methods to advance teaching, learning, assessment, and evaluation in various organizations.
Dr. Neubauer teaches graduate courses in global health, public health, and evaluation, merging research with practice to train future leaders. Her influence extends beyond academia, significantly impacting health education and public health globally.
Dr. Gregory Phillips II
Dr. Gregory Phillips II serves as an Associate Professor of Medical Social Sciences and Preventive Medicine in the Division of Epidemiology at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He leads the Evaluation, Data Integration, and Technical Assistance (EDIT) Program at the Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing (ISGMH). In this capacity, Dr. Phillips harnesses complex epidemiological data and community-based evaluations to illuminate and tackle health disparities in marginalized minority populations.
His multifaceted research portfolio includes analyzing multi-level network and contextual data to understand infectious disease transmission, scrutinizing national surveillance data to uncover health risk patterns and substance use behaviors among LGBTQ+ youth, and bolstering the efforts of local community organizations in reducing HIV’s impact on underserved groups.
In addition to directing the EDIT Program, Dr. Phillips is the Co-Director of the Ending the HIV Epidemic Scientific Working Group at the Third Coast Center for AIDS Research (TC-CFAR), where he contributes to the strategic planning and implementation of research initiatives aimed at halting the HIV epidemic. He also holds the position of Co-Director of the Community Health Research Concentration within the Program in Public Health, further underscoring his commitment to community-engaged research and public health practice. Through these leadership roles, Dr. Phillips is at the vanguard of integrating scientific inquiry with community action to promote health equity and support the well-being of sexual and gender minority populations.