Symposium 3: Community Voices in Health Promotion

Grand Challenges Planning Grant Symposium 3: Community Voices in Health Promotion

Mark your calendars for February 27, 2025, at Carolyn Pope Edwards Hall, Room 227. This impactful symposium will focus on addressing health disparities and improving health across Nebraska.

Event Details:

• Date:  Thursday, February 27, 2025
• Time:  8:45 AM to 4:00 PM CST
• Location:  227 Carolyn Pope Edwards Hall, UNL City Campus, or Online via Zoom
  • Click here to access the event via Zoom
• Registration is free
• Lunch will be provided for in-person attendees as space allows 

In person registration has closed, but you can still use the link below to register to attend via Zoom!

 Register Now

Program Agenda:

8:45 am – Check in

9:00 am – Welcome (Michelle Hughes, UNL)

9:05 am – Invited speaker presentations:

• 9:05 -- Myths, Realities, and Health Aspects of Breastfeeding: A Cross-Cultural Examination (Aabha Chaubey, Good Neighbor Community Center)
• 9:35 -- Community Health Workers/Promotoras: The Workforces for Building the World We Want to See (Johanna Pesante-Daniel, Public Health Solutions)
• 10:05 -- Strategies for Native Community Empowerment to Improve Health and the Impact of Different Healthcare Perspectives Among Tribal Populations (Nancie Velasquez, Ponca Tribe)

10:35 -- Break

10:45 – Panel discussion

12:00 – Lunch, networking, poster session

1:30 pm – Invited speaker presentations:

• 1:30 pm -- Strategic Communications in Community-Engaged Health Research (Changmin Yan, UNL)
• 2:00 pm -- Lifting Voices, Breaking Barriers: Health Equity Through Community Health Work (Angel Dale, Four Corners Health Dept.)

2:30 -- Break

2:40 -- Invited speaker presentations:

• 2:40 -- Community Health Outreach and Engagement (Maria Reyes, Lexington Regional Health Center)
• 3:10 -- Fostering Health and Wellbeing in the Hispanic Population (TinaMaria Fernandez, HOPE-Esperanza)

3:40 pm – Group discussion

4:00 pm -- Concluding remarks (Michelle Hughes, UNL)

Invited Speakers and Affiliations:

• Aabha Chaubey, M.Phil, MSW – Development Assistant, Good Neighbor Community Center
• Angel Dale, CHW, CPST – Program Coordinator, Four Corners Health Department
• TinaMaria Fernandez, BSN, RN, BA  – Founder and Executive Director, HOPE-Esperanza
• Johanna Pesante-Daniel – Health Equity Coordinator and Health Literacy Specialist, Public Health Solutions Health Department
• Maria Reyes, Community Health Worker and Spanish Interpreter, Lexington Regional Health Center 
• Nancie Velasquez – Community Health Manager, Ponca Tribe
• Changmin Yan, PhD – Associate Professor, UNL College of Journalism and Mass Communications

Discussion Panel:

• Evelyn Martinez, Lead Community Health Worker, 3 Rivers Public Health Department
• Lanetta (PoePoe) Edison-Soe, Health Education & Advocacy Program Manager, Asian Community & Cultural Center 
• Karina Ruiz-Vargas, Lactation Consultant and Birth Doula, Malone Center
• Vivian Garcia, Minority Health Outreach Manager, OneWorld Community Health Centers 
• Lisa Ross, Director of Community Affairs, Good Neighbor Community Center

Research Posters:
We are featuring six innovative posters at the symposium. These projects range from tele-audiology to community nutrition education and rural dental care, highlighting collaborative efforts across the state.

• How an Interprofessional Collaboration to Provide Tele-Audiology Is Improving Access to Early Hearing Detection and Intervention in Rural Nebraska, Hannah Ditmars, UNL.

For many years, the state of Nebraska Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (NE EHDI), in the United States, had received concerns from professionals and parents in rural Nebraska regarding access to diagnostic hearing testing for infants. In 2016, an Au.D. student interning with NE EHDI evaluated regional differences in timely follow-up across Nebraska. Her capstone found that area of residence within the state had a significant effect on a child completing a diagnostic hearing evaluation, especially auditory brainstem response testing (ABR), by 3 months old. This presentation will describe the partnership established between Educational Service Unit Teachers of the Deaf/Hard of Hearing and the University of Nebraska Barkley Speech Language and Hearing Clinic (with support from the Nebraska Department of Education, and the Nebraska Early Development Network) to provide diagnostic follow-up via tele-audiology, for infants who do not pass their newborn hearing screening, at 5 remote sites in western Nebraska. The presentation will explain the interprofessional collaborations developed and maintained to provide these services while keeping costs low. Challenges, implementation, and current outcomes will be discussed. The presenter hopes this unique collaboration will help others to think beyond their typical service provision model to improve access to healthcare.

• 20 Collaborative Champions: Nebraska Extension and UNMC Driving Rural Health Impact, Hannah Guenther, Nebraska Extension.

Rural communities in Nebraska face unique health challenges, including limited healthcare access, higher rates of chronic disease, and environmental exposures. Addressing these disparities requires innovative, collaborative efforts that leverage the expertise of diverse organizations. Nebraska Extension and the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) represent two distinct entities with complementary missions. Together, through strategic partnerships, they are driving meaningful improvements in rural health.

This poster, titled “20 Collaborative Champions: Nebraska Extension and UNMC Driving Rural Health Impact,” highlights the impactful programs and initiatives born from this dynamic collaboration. By combining Nebraska Extension’s presence and local expertise across all 93 counties and UNMC’s research and clinical knowledge, these efforts address critical areas such as cancer prevention, chronic disease management, workforce development, and health equity. The poster will showcase specific programs, such as initiatives targeting sleep health, nutrition education, and environmental safety, while emphasizing measurable impacts on individuals and communities. 

Partnership and collaboration are the key to driving impact on a statewide level - it is the goal of this poster to inspire new collaborations by demonstrating how diverse organizations can work together to address complex health challenges

• Nutrition Education Programming Fosters Confidence and Independence for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Alyssa Wessling, Nebraska Extension.

Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) experience significant health disparities, particularly in terms of food access, nutrition, and food safety, which contributes to poor health outcomes and reduced quality of life. This programming aimed to provide adults with IDD opportunities for hands-on, experiential learning regarding cooking skills and food safety, while also offering developmentally appropriate nutrition education and food access resources. The goal of this community-based nutrition education intervention is to foster greater independence in the kitchen, cultivate healthy eating habits, and ultimately enhance overall well-being in this underserved population. By addressing the unique needs of adults with IDD, these interventions seek to bridge gaps in health equity and promote improved access to nutrition-related knowledge and resources.

• Building a Coalition for Health Equity: Mobilizing Community Leadership and Action, Emily Gratopp, Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County.

The Lincoln Health Equity Coalition works to advance health equity through connection, capacity-building, and action, ensuring every person has fair and just opportunities for a healthy, high-quality life. Founded in 2021 as part of Well Connected Communities, the Coalition prioritizes community voices in defining and addressing health inequities.

Recognizing the need for qualitative insights beyond data, the Coalition conducted nine focus groups with 92 participants, including community members and stakeholders from social services, healthcare, and education. Thematic analysis identified five key priorities: 1) Balanced healthy lifestyles, 2) Medical care access, 3) Transportation, 4) Access to education, information, and resources, and 5) Creating healthier communities & neighborhoods.

A core initiative of the Coalition is youth engagement in health equity solutions. Through two Photovoice projects, youth documented health inequities through photography, amplifying community concerns. Two Youth Health Equity Projecta researched resource-sharing strategies and community engagement methods, leading to: Health Equity Referrals Handouts, ensuring access to vital resources and Health Equity Archetypes, a framework for organizations to assess service accessibility and improve equity.

By prioritizing community-led research, youth leadership, and systemic change, the Lincoln Health Equity Coalition is working to create community systems that support vital health conditions for all.

• Co-Creating Culturally Responsive Nutrition Education for Refugee and Immigrant Families for the First 1,000 Days of Life, Emily Gratopp, UNL; Marusa Jonas, UNL; Zahraa Rida, UNL; Tara Dunker, UNL.

With funding from the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), Nebraska Extension collaborated with the Arabic, Kurdish, Pashto, and Dari communities in Lincoln, NE, from December 2023 to July 2024, to co-create culturally responsive nutrition education materials. The project focused on the first 1000 days of life, aligning with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans while tailoring materials for Middle Eastern families. Materials were translated into Arabic (Sudanese and Middle Eastern), Pashto, Dari, and Kurdish (specific to Yazidi).

 The multi-expert team included Nebraska Extension faculty specializing in infant and toddler nutrition, five culture-specific experts (Culture Brokers), and eight families with infants and toddlers. These community members contributed cultural expertise, recipe development, and photo-staging to create practical, culturally relevant handouts for nationwide use.

The process followed an interactive cycle of feedback and revisions, ensuring the materials reflected both cultural values and infant and toddler feeding recommendations. A key challenge was addressing the oral traditions of these cultures, where information is traditionally passed down verbally. This was resolved by integrating QR codes with a ‘scan to listen’ option in native languages, making materials accessible and overcoming literacy differences.

 Additionally, involving families ensured the inclusion of food and family imagery that resonates with each culture. This innovative, community-engaged approach bridged gaps in foodways and literacy, resulting in effective, culturally tailored resources that support the nutritional needs of diverse families.

• Dental Care for Children in Rural Communities, Paige Castle, Health Educator at the Sarpy/Cass Health Department.

Children's oral health disparities in rural communities are preventable and resources are available.  A major barrier is access to dental care.  Providing home oral health and diet education for children and their parents/guardians is an important step toward ridding the barrier.  Ensuring those who qualify for Medicaid are given the opportunity to register is the next step.  Unfortunately, there are few providers that accept Medicaid.  How can we better educate and connect children to dental services?

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