About Us

In an effort to move the needle on Illinois’ 3 to 1 African American to Caucasian infant mortality rate, the Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Network (CoIIN) Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Illinois Strategy Team identified two of Dr. Lu’s 12 strategies from Closing the Black-White Gap in Birth Outcomes: A Life-Course Approach, to be implemented among Illinois’ most fragile populations.  
 
By January 2015, the CoIIN SDOH Illinois Strategy Team split up into two sub-aims in order to enhance coordination and integration of family support services and reduce poverty among African American families.  This toolkit is being developed as part of the reduction of poverty sub-aim team  to encourage local health departments, policymakers, students, and the general public to impact the social determinants of health in their communities.

Kelly Vrablic, MPH
Infant Mortality Reduction Coordinator
Illinois Department of Public Health
 
Arden Handler, DrPH
Professor, Community Health Sciences and Maternal and Child Health
University of Illinois School of Public Health
 
Deb Rosenberg, PhD
Research Associate Professor
School of Public Health
University of Illinois at Chicago
 
Jim Bloyd, MPH
Regional Health Officer
Cook County Department of Public Health
 
Jordan-Lindsay Morris, MPH, CHES, EMT-P
Community Health Specialist III
Lake County Health Department and Community Health Center
 
Onie Riley, B.A, MSNM
Director of Operations
Illinois African American Family Commission
 
Wesley Epplin, MPH
Policy Analyst
Health & Medicine Policy Research Group
 
Juanona Brewster, MDiv, MTS, MJ
Senior Director, ECD
Illinois Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
 
Anna Blankenberger, MPH
Program Coordinator, Health Education             
March of Dimes