ID
M202609040340
Pathway
Education
Population, Community, and Global Health
Structural Inequity, Advocacy, and Justice
Clinical, Community, and Translational Research
Description
Worcester Refugee and Immigrant Support and Empowerment for Health (RISE) was established in May 2023 to address significant healthcare challenges experienced by refugees and immigrants in Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded through the collaborative efforts of community-based organizations serving newcomers, RISE was created to build a healthcare model that better responds to the linguistic, cultural, and trauma-related needs of refugee and immigrant populations. RISE began supporting newly arriving Haitian migrants in emergency shelter settings in October 2023 and launched primary care services in April 2024, followed by maternity care in June 2024 and behavioral health services in August 2024. In December 2024, RISE relocated to a newly renovated 7,000-square-foot trauma-informed clinical and community facility at 18 Chestnut Street.
RISE provides culturally sensitive primary care, maternal health services, behavioral health support, community health worker navigation, doula services, health insurance navigation, legal clinics, and immigration medical examinations. Through partnerships with community-based organizations, healthcare providers, resettlement agencies, and local government, RISE advances health equity and improves access to care for Worcester’s diverse newcomer communities. RISE’s mission is to build and provide effective, culturally sensitive, trauma-informed, and community-grounded healthcare interventions that eliminate barriers and help refugees and immigrants achieve health equity and self-sufficiency through innovation, co-location, capacity-building, and collaboration.
RISE’s vision is to see refugees and immigrants lead healthy and productive lives in the United States and thrive physically, emotionally, socially, and economically. RISE advances this mission through an integrated model of care that combines primary care, maternal and child health services, behavioral health, community health worker support, workforce development, and community partnerships. Services are designed to be linguistically and culturally congruent, recognizing the unique strengths, experiences, and healthcare needs of individuals arriving from diverse regions of the world. Through collaboration with community-based organizations, healthcare institutions, legal service providers, and public agencies, RISE works to reduce health disparities, improve access to care, and strengthen community well-being.
The Collaborative in Health Equity (CHE) at UMass Chan Medical School is dedicated to advancing health equity through community-driven innovation in research, education, clinical care, and public service. Grounded in authentic partnerships with underserved communities, CHE's work spans four core areas: Global Health; Community Engagement and Outreach; Workforce Development and Capacity Building; and Research, Education, and Training.
Students participating in a Pathway Learning Project with RISE and CHE will have the opportunity to contribute to meaningful, community-embedded initiatives while developing skills in refugee/migrant health equity, research, and advocacy. Current project opportunities could encompass (but are not limited to) refugee women’s health, infant/pediatric care, refugee migrant health education, and ethical research engaging refugee/migrant communities. All projects will be conducted through a lens that centers community voices, while nurturing and sustaining trust with vulnerable, marginalized and underserved communities through Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) engagement. These efforts are united by RISE and CHE's collective mission to advance refugee and migrant health equity while honoring community voices through collaborative and meaningful work.
In addition to gaining hands-on project experience, students will have the opportunity to build targeted research skills and participate in weekly research project development workshops through CHEC x CHE, a program led by CHE's Research, Education, and Training Core. These workshops are designed to support students in developing rigorous, health equity focused research projects while fostering mentorship, collaboration, and professional growth. Students will also be invited to participate in the Department of Family Medicine’s Research-in-Progress and Research Forum meetings for additional exposure and skill-building on health equity-relevant concepts, research projects, and methods.
Students are welcome to engage directly with RISE while also taking advantage of any of the CHE’s four core areas through a collaborative project of choice and make an impact by advancing refugee and migrant health equity through clearly defined project goals, metrics and indicators.
RISE provides culturally sensitive primary care, maternal health services, behavioral health support, community health worker navigation, doula services, health insurance navigation, legal clinics, and immigration medical examinations. Through partnerships with community-based organizations, healthcare providers, resettlement agencies, and local government, RISE advances health equity and improves access to care for Worcester’s diverse newcomer communities. RISE’s mission is to build and provide effective, culturally sensitive, trauma-informed, and community-grounded healthcare interventions that eliminate barriers and help refugees and immigrants achieve health equity and self-sufficiency through innovation, co-location, capacity-building, and collaboration.
RISE’s vision is to see refugees and immigrants lead healthy and productive lives in the United States and thrive physically, emotionally, socially, and economically. RISE advances this mission through an integrated model of care that combines primary care, maternal and child health services, behavioral health, community health worker support, workforce development, and community partnerships. Services are designed to be linguistically and culturally congruent, recognizing the unique strengths, experiences, and healthcare needs of individuals arriving from diverse regions of the world. Through collaboration with community-based organizations, healthcare institutions, legal service providers, and public agencies, RISE works to reduce health disparities, improve access to care, and strengthen community well-being.
The Collaborative in Health Equity (CHE) at UMass Chan Medical School is dedicated to advancing health equity through community-driven innovation in research, education, clinical care, and public service. Grounded in authentic partnerships with underserved communities, CHE's work spans four core areas: Global Health; Community Engagement and Outreach; Workforce Development and Capacity Building; and Research, Education, and Training.
Students participating in a Pathway Learning Project with RISE and CHE will have the opportunity to contribute to meaningful, community-embedded initiatives while developing skills in refugee/migrant health equity, research, and advocacy. Current project opportunities could encompass (but are not limited to) refugee women’s health, infant/pediatric care, refugee migrant health education, and ethical research engaging refugee/migrant communities. All projects will be conducted through a lens that centers community voices, while nurturing and sustaining trust with vulnerable, marginalized and underserved communities through Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) engagement. These efforts are united by RISE and CHE's collective mission to advance refugee and migrant health equity while honoring community voices through collaborative and meaningful work.
In addition to gaining hands-on project experience, students will have the opportunity to build targeted research skills and participate in weekly research project development workshops through CHEC x CHE, a program led by CHE's Research, Education, and Training Core. These workshops are designed to support students in developing rigorous, health equity focused research projects while fostering mentorship, collaboration, and professional growth. Students will also be invited to participate in the Department of Family Medicine’s Research-in-Progress and Research Forum meetings for additional exposure and skill-building on health equity-relevant concepts, research projects, and methods.
Students are welcome to engage directly with RISE while also taking advantage of any of the CHE’s four core areas through a collaborative project of choice and make an impact by advancing refugee and migrant health equity through clearly defined project goals, metrics and indicators.
Goals
1. Support RISE and the CHE in advancing its mission of driving refugee and migrant health equity through community-based initiatives
2. Engage with refugee-serving community stakeholders on a specific topic pertaining to refugee and/or migrant health equity
3. Culminate project into written manuscript for submission to peer review and eventual publication, and/or policy brief or other reporting mechanism; disseminate research findings across refugee-serving community stakeholders
2. Engage with refugee-serving community stakeholders on a specific topic pertaining to refugee and/or migrant health equity
3. Culminate project into written manuscript for submission to peer review and eventual publication, and/or policy brief or other reporting mechanism; disseminate research findings across refugee-serving community stakeholders
Mentor
Crista Johnson-Agbakwu, Olga Valdman, Katharine Barnard, Jennifer Carroll, Sara Shields
Mentor E-mail
Crista.Johnson-Agbakwu@umassmed.edu
Department
Population and Quantitative Health Sciences (PQHS) and Family Medicine and Community Health
Prior Students
Important expectations to consider: 1) Students will be expected to become part of RISE’s Student Interest Group, 2) commit to volunteering regularly with RISE; 3) plan to include a summer research month; and 4) must commit to all in person time (non-virtual/remote option)
Availability
Yes
Number Spots
2-3