Improving health literacy for farmworkers and helping them get the health insurance for which they’re qualified.
Making emergency departments better and more-friendly environments for people with autism.
Retrofitting a neighborhood playground with wheelchair-accessible equipment to offer the benefits of local recreation to people who are disabled.
These ideas to advance health equity for historically marginalized populations are among the 15 finalists in the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research’s fourth annual Health Equity Challenge, sponsored by The MolinaCares Accord (MolinaCares), in collaboration with Molina Healthcare of California (Molina), and the California Health Care Foundation. Since it debuted in 2022, the challenge invites graduate students from any UCLA department or school to propose a project that would help address a health disparity in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, or Riverside counties.
“Every year the students who enter the challenge rely on their lived experiences and varied backgrounds to propose ideas and interventions that with proper support, mentoring, and partnership could make an enormous difference in the lives of people who have not been properly served by our health care and social welfare systems,” said Kathryn Kietzman, PhD, director of CHPR’s Health Equity Program.
The program begins Jan. 9. Each of the 15 selected students will receive a $2,500 stipend and mentorship from a UCLA faculty member or community leader to develop a proposal that a community organization could realistically implement. An independent review committee will review the 15 finalists’ proposals and up to four of the graduate students will be awarded an additional $2,500 stipend and their partner community organizations will receive up to $50,000 to implement the project.
“Molina is proud to once again support the UCLA Health Equity Challenge. This powerful program encourages rising health care professionals to drive innovative solutions that address health disparities in California,” said Abbie Totten, plan president of Molina Healthcare of California. “We are grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the California Health Care Foundation in continuing this impactful program.”
In his proposal, Jahmil Lacey would leverage the cultural significance of barbershops as safe spaces in Black neighborhoods by transforming them into mental health hubs for young people, where they can access tailored mental health resources, mentorship, and psychosocial support.
“As someone who is now able to understand the long-term impact of my experiences as a young Black male, I hope to create a model that empowers Black male youth to find healing, resilience, and a safe space for mental wellness,” said Lacey, who is a medical student at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science.
Qianyun Wang, who is studying for her doctorate in social welfare at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, wants to create an art therapy program for older Chinese immigrants suffering grief. In the program, they would share photos and stories and attend sessions led by mental health professionals culturally and linguistically aligned with participants.
“I have seen the urgent need for culturally sensitive support, especially among those facing grief and bereavement,” Wang said. “My proposal for a community-based art therapy program would empower older Chinese immigrants to articulate their experiences through photography and group discussions, complemented by vital mental health education. Culminating in community exhibitions, it not only promotes healing but also advances cultural sensitivity in mental health support.”
Thanks to the generous support of MolinaCares and the California Health Care Foundation, the UCLA Health Equity Challenge has supported 39 students and awarded nearly $500,000 in funding in its first three years. This year, the program received a record-breaking 43 applications.
“The innovative solutions proposed by these UCLA graduate students demonstrate exactly the kind of creative, community-centered thinking we need to address California's most pressing health equity challenges,” said Kara Carter, senior vice president of strategy and programs at the California Health Care Foundation. “By connecting emerging health leaders directly with community organizations, this program creates practical, implementable solutions for communities facing the greatest barriers to care.”
The 15 finalists are:
Amani Carson, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science and David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Project: Community art program for low-income neurological patients and caregivers from the Black community. Patients, loved ones, and caregivers would perform stories of their experiences.
Taylor Carty, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Project: Community planning to retrofit an existing playground in Vermont Square with inclusive equipment, such as wheelchair-accessible swings, ramps, sensory play zones, and communication boards.
Naomi Castellon-Perez, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Project: Improve air quality in schools to decrease absenteeism. Her proposal would provide air filters, box fans and installation supplies to classrooms and educate students about air quality and climate change.
Tiffany Chen, UCLA School of Dentistry
Project: Partner with existing mobile clinics to provide dental cleanings, hand out dental kits and share oral health information to address oral health care disparities for people experiencing homelessness.
Tiffany Ying Wen Chen, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Project: Culturally relevant, multi-language program for patients with Parkinson’s that would conduct workshops, provide a telehealth platform with support groups, and use vans to bring care to people where they are.
Angela Rose David, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Project: Mental health support program tailored specifically for Filipinos, which would offer peer support circles, cultural mentorship and guidance, mental health resources and counseling.
Suhong He, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Project: Afterschool program for preventive mental health care for Asian youth. The program would consist of peer-led workshops that use mindfulness, meditation, Traditional Chinese Medicine, guided imagery, and art.
Mami Horikawa, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Project: Improve emergency department care for people with autism by conducting a needs assessment to identify components for a toolkit of resources that are practical in an emergency department setting.
Denise Jimenez-Tapia, UCLA PRIME program, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and UCLA Anderson School of Management
Project: Improve health literacy among farmworkers, specifically for occupational hazards such as heat-related illness and pesticide exposure, and increase insurance enrollment by holding education sessions at laundromats.
Jahmil Lacey, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science and David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Project: Reduce mental health disparities experienced by young Black men by turning barbershops into health hubs with tailored mental health resources, mentorship and psychosocial support, including one-on-one and group therapy sessions, and resource navigation.
Hannah Lee, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Project: Targeted mental health program for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander youth that provides culturally sensitive mental health services, including curriculum on body image and eating disorders, gaming addiction, among other topics.
Zeena Mestari, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Project: A campaign to support caregivers for people with autism that would offer workshops in English and Spanish and provide an online platform to raise awareness.
Wendy Tran, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Project: Online platform to share stories, mental health resources and guides, and scam prevention education to support overall better mental health for Asian Americans.
Qianyun Wang, UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
Project: Art therapy program for older Chinese immigrants struggling with grief by having them share photos and stories. Sessions would be led by mental health professionals culturally and linguistically aligned with participants.
Halee Renae Yue, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Project: Build resilience and teach leadership skills among foster care youth by engaging them in a program to train shelter dogs, making the animals more adoptable.
“It has been so gratifying to see how enthusiastic the students are to partner with the community organizations,” Kietzman said, “and bring what they’re learning at UCLA out into the areas of Southern California where they can really make a difference.”
Last year’s winning projects included: using point-of-care ultrasound to screen for heart failure among people experiencing homelessness in Hollywood; a jail diversion and housing program that incorporates the knowledge of individuals who have experiences with incarceration and/or homelessness; a mental health care curriculum that integrated Traditional Chinese Medicine with integrative health for youth in Los Angeles County’s San Gabriel Valley; and a project that addressed postpartum depression among South Asian women in Los Angeles.
The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research (CHPR) is one of the nation’s leading health policy research centers and the premier source of health policy information for California. UCLA CHPR improves the public’s health through high quality, objective, and evidence-based research and data that informs effective policymaking. UCLA CHPR is the home of the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) and is part of the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and affiliated with the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.
Established by Molina Healthcare, Inc., The MolinaCares Accord oversees a community investment platform created to improve the health and well-being of disadvantaged populations by funding meaningful, measurable, and innovative programs and solutions that improve health, life, and living in local communities. The MolinaCares Accord funds such measures through the Molina Healthcare Charitable Foundation, a 501(c)(3) established in 2020 by Molina Healthcare, Inc.
Molina Healthcare of California has been providing government-funded care for over 40 years. The Company serves members through Medi-Cal, Medicare, Medicare-Medicaid (Duals) and Covered California (Marketplace). Molina’s service areas include Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, San Diego, Orange County and Imperial counties. Through its locally operated health plans, Molina Healthcare, Inc., a Fortune 500 company, provides managed health care services under the Medicaid and Medicare programs, and through state insurance marketplaces. For more information about Molina Healthcare of California, visit MolinaHealthcare.com.
The California Health Care Foundation is dedicated to advancing meaningful, measurable improvements in the way the health care delivery system provides care to the people of California, particularly those with low incomes and those whose needs are not well served by the status quo.