UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Tracee Saunders, assistant professor of political science and Social Science Research Institute co-funded faculty member, was announced in fall 2024 as a member of the 2024-25 cohort of the Scholars Strategy Network (SSN)’s Health Equity Scholars Program (HESP).
This fellowship supports Saunders’ research on how barriers to Medicaid enrollment differ between states and approaches states could take to minimize these barriers. Saunders plans to use the fellowship to support translating her work into the policy space through writing op-eds and engaging in outreach to relevant policymakers or stakeholders to share research findings.
“It’s a wonderful honor to begin my career as a researcher with the support of the Scholars Strategy Network,” said Saunders. “It is my goal to make sure that research findings regarding Medicaid enrollment barriers get into the right hands of policymakers and stakeholders so that we can shape policies to be more effective and equitable.”
The Scholars Strategy Network, with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, introduced the Health Equity Scholars Program in 2021. The program's creation was motivated by fostering healthy communities and a commitment to policy and health equity. Now in its third year, SSN is committed to the ongoing support of this program and its primary goal of promoting health equity throughout the United States.
The 2024-25 HESP cohort is a talented community of early-career scholars researching social determinants of health. The program is structured to enable cohort members to disseminate their research findings among peers, senior scholars, policymakers, media, and practitioners. This sharing of diverse perspectives aims to shed light on how to conduct rigorous and actionable research and apply it to public health. This collaborative environment fosters a sense of inclusion and cross-disciplinary communication, encouraging participants to push the boundaries of their research and its real-world applications.
HESP's year-long schedule, starting at the beginning of the 2024 academic year and extending through the summer of 2025, is designed to foster relationships. The calendar includes an early 2025 cohort gathering, ongoing virtual group workshops and training sessions, and individual support from SSN staff. These resources are specifically designed to empower participants with the tools and skills required to communicate their research findings to policy stakeholders, enhance their professional development, and foster relationships with their peers and senior scholars.