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ABOUT
The Black Young Professionals' Public Health Network, Inc.
(The Network) was conceptualized by four student
members at the 128th Annual Meeting of the American
Public Health Association (APHA) held in Boston, MA,
November of 2000. It was established in recognition
of an increased need for more deliberate and concerted
opportunities for professional development of African
Americans in the APHA and in the public health field.
The Network will debut this year at the 129th Annual
Meeting of the APHA to be held in Atlanta, GA, October
21-25, 2001.
The Network is an independent association with
membership open to all students of color as well as
public health professionals who support its purposes and
objectives. There are two types of membership, namely
student and young professional.
The Network has established formal and informal ties
with several sections and caucuses within APHA
including, The Public Health Student Caucus and The
Black Caucus of Health Workers. We will debut this year
at the annual APHA conference with the intent to
continue participating in future annual meetings.
The Network fosters opportunities for the education,
employment and advancement of students and public health
professionals of color in the field of public health.
The Network promotes increased participation of our
membership in professional meetings and on governing
boards, caucuses, sections and committees of the APHA
and their related affiliates. It stimulates professional
and social contact among its members, and the
interchange of concerns, ideas and information related
to its objectives. The Network strives to increase
communication between traditional Schools of Public
Health and the newly-forming MPH programs at
Historically Black Colleges and Universities
(HBCUs).
The Network aims to increase the visibility of black
public health students and young professionals, to
facilitate the networking opportunities among public
health professionals engaged in work concerning
communities of color, and to improve the professional
experiences for minority professionals entering and
working in the field.
The objectives of The Network are:
- to serve as a Peer Network among blacks in public
health at HBCUs and other established graduate
programs in public health;
- to promote the matriculation of students of color
into public health programs and to serve as a vehicle
for undergraduate students to be exposed to career
opportunities in public health; and
- to serve as a referral/information source for
potential employees, graduate programs and other
parties to recruit students and young public health
professionals of color.
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