The Colin Powell School has been awarded a $500,000 planning grant from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation to establish the Health and Opportunity Leadership Institute (HOLI). Led by Dr. Dave A. Chokshi, MD, MSc, the inaugural Sternberg Family Professor of Leadership, HOLI will cultivate a new generation of leaders from diverse and historically marginalized communities in health and public policy. The initiative will also develop solutions for entrenched challenges, such as healthcare affordability, homelessness, child poverty, and racial inequities.
Since joining the school in August 2023, Chokshi has focused on expanding leadership studies and scaling student leadership initiatives at the Colin Powell School. HOLI is central to this mission, providing fellowships, mentorship, and career opportunities for CCNY students and strengthening pathways into the health professions. A key element of this initiative is the anticipated collaboration with the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy and the CUNY School of Medicine, aimed at bolstering the health professions pipeline. HOLI will also interface with a new health justice minor and a health justice certificate program at the Colin Powell School.
This initiative represents an important step toward reimagining leadership in public health and unlocking opportunities for historically marginalized communities. Read more in the press release here
