News Release

Minority Health Conference to focus on crucial
role of partnerships in alleviating health disparities

CHAPEL HILL -- Dr. Meredith Minkler, professor of health and social behavior at the University of California at Berkeley, will present the keynote address at the 27^th Annual Minority Health Conference to be held Friday (Feb. 24) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s William and Ida Friday Continuing Education Center.

Minkler will examine partnerships nationwide between communities of color and outside researchers as she presents the eighth annual William T. Small Jr. Keynote Lecture. Her 9 a.m. address also will be broadcast by satellite and webcast at 2 p.m.

The conference is presented by the UNC School of Public Health’s Minority Student Caucus, N.C. Institute for Public Health and Dean’s Office.

The theme of this year’s Minority Health Conference is "Community-Based Research and Practice: How Do We Make It Work for Everyone?" UNC School of Public Health student organizers Chris Heaney and Aisha Moore said they chose Minkler because she could present concrete examples of successful partnerships that address health disparities.

"Community-based participatory research involves community members in conducting the study and in using the findings to bring about change," Minkler said.

The conference draws a national and statewide audience, often filling to capacity well before the day of the event. Session topics this year include immigrant health, minorities and research trials, sexual health, environmental health, homicide among minority youth, American Indian health, disaster management and obesity.

More information about the conference is available at www.minority.unc.edu. Information about the satellite broadcast and webcasts of the keynote presentation can be found at http://www.minority.unc.edu/sph/minconf/2006/.

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N.C. Institute for Public Health contact: Bev Holt at (919) 966-6274 or bev_holt@unc.edu

UNC School of Public Health contact: Ramona DuBose at (919) 966-7467 or ramona_dubose@unc.edu