Maternal and Child Health Center of Excellence to Expand Initiatives with New Grant

The Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Center of Excellence at the Rollins School of Public Health aims to expand the maternal and child health workforce regionally and nationally with the help of a new five-year grant renewal from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).  

This work is especially urgent when the United States is facing the highest maternal mortality rate of all high-income nations, and rural and low-income areas in Georgia in particular are struggling with maternal health care deserts.  

The MCH Center of Excellence at Rollins is part of a network of 13 maternal and child health centers across the country funded by HRSA. Sarah Blake, PhD, associate professor of health policy and management at Rollins, is director of the center and a leading expert in maternal and child health, which is a major area of focus for Rollins. Blake’s directorship began in 2024, and since then, she’s worked with Deputy Director Eve Rose to expand the center’s reach by strengthening community partnerships and building student leadership opportunities.  

Building Student Advocacy Skills  

A signature initiative of the Center is its MCH Policy Advocacy Workshop, which is held each fall in collaboration with Morehouse School of Medicine’s Center for Maternal Health Equity, Georgia State University, Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition of Georgia, and Georgia Watch. The workshops teach students skills in policy and advocacy related to current and critical MCH topics in Georgia. Students work with community-based organizations during the workshop to develop a "policy pitch" that they deliver to a panel of Georgia legislators for feedback.  

Training Initiatives  

In addition to the renewal of the grant, MCH received an emergency preparedness supplemental grant, which will offer new opportunities for students to train on topics of MCH and emergency preparedness with the state of Georgia.

MCH’s highly selective certificate program also offers students leadership training, professional development, networking opportunities, and applied practice experience funding. Recent graduate Thai Vang, class of 2025, collaborated with the Clarkston Health Equity Coalition to conduct a needs assessment and focus groups to better understand pediatric nutrition services for refugee communities. Others are collaborating with organizations such as the March of Dimes and the Refugee Women’s Network to advance maternal and child health at both local and national levels.  

In addition, MCH provides yearly fellowships to select master’s and doctoral students in the maternal and child health workforce.  

Jason Talley, a 2023 MCH certificate student, notes that the MCH program was instrumental in shaping his professional trajectory and preparing him for his future career.  

"I gained a deep understanding of the life course perspective, health equity, and systems thinking—all of which I regularly draw upon in my current work,” he says. “The program's emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and community engagement also equipped me with the skills to work effectively across sectors and with diverse populations...Being part of a cohort of students passionate about improving MCH outcomes provided a strong sense of community and a collaborative learning environment.”

Blake says that as the MCH celebrates a decade of impact, the primary goal remains the same. “We are working with students to gain the skills, experiences, and confidence to advance maternal and child health at every level. Critical to this success are the opportunities our students have working with MCH partner organizations, such as the Georgia Department of Public Health. Supporting our students in becoming the next generation of leaders in the field underscores our mission.”