Matched Grants, Endowment Strengthen Public Health Workforce
A newly announced $50,000 endowment and a $383,000 grant award that pairs equal funding
from Deschutes County and the Central Oregon Health Council (COHC) will support a
broad-based public health workforce initiative taking shape at Central Oregon Community
College (COCC).
Retired physicians Dr. Durlin Hickok and Dr. Carol Wallace established a $50,000 community
health worker endowment through the COCC Foundation and donated $20,000 to initiate
an internship program with local agencies. Together, the grant awards, endowment and
donation will support student recruitment, training development, scholarship backing,
paid internships and an increased focus on careers in the public health sector.
“The pandemic has placed a strain on public health. Newly trained workers will fill
an immediate need for entry-level public health positions,” said grant project lead
Dr. Sarah Baron, assistant public health professor at COCC and a member of the community
college workforce development group of the state’s Traditional Health Worker Commission.
“Through this initiative, made possible by Deschutes County and the COHC, we anticipate
increasing the number of people interested in public health careers with the goal
of placing 140 individuals into the public health workforce over two years to provide
pandemic relief.”
Last fall, COCC launched a successful six-credit community health worker training
course, designed to meet all Oregon Health Authority guidelines for the certification-ready
specialty. The new funding will expand on that training, add a six-credit peer support
specialist training for working with those in mental health recovery, and support
scholarships for students to complete these trainings.
Additionally, grant dollars will help devise hands-on internships, shaped in consultation
with an advisory task force, and provide 45 paid stipends of $400 per term. The investment
will also expand the role of COCC’s health careers recruiter, increasing the position’s
hours and focusing on bilingual and bicultural recruitment.
“Public health and equitable access to health services have always been important
priorities for Carol and myself,” said Dr. Hickok, commenting on the endowment he
and his spouse established. “COCC has the only program in Central Oregon for training
community health workers who are integral to reaching populations that are of greatest
need.”
“This is truly a community-wide collaboration, one that will bolster our region’s
public health workforce and help many individuals connect with meaningful careers,”
added Baron. Input and guidance, she noted, has come from numerous partners, such
as the Deschutes County public health advisory board, East Cascades Works, PacificSource
and others.
“The pandemic has shown how critical it is to have a robust public health workforce,”
said Deschutes County Commissioner Phil Chang. “This program will help strengthen
local public health services.”