Parkinson School of Health Sciences & Public Health, Community Partners Secure State Grant to Develop Social Enterprise Project
MAYWOOD, Illinois – March 29, 2021 – With the help of a $157,595 Restore, Reinvest, Renew (R3) Grant from the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, Loyola University Chicago’s Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health and its partners will take the next step in planning and creating a social enterprise program in Maywood, Illinois. Loyola’s partners on this project include Proviso East High School, Proviso Partners for Health, the Proviso East School-Based Health Center, and Cielito Lindo Café. Parkinson Professor and Chair of Public Health Sciences Amy Luke, Health Sciences Campus Ministry Director Ginny McCarthy, and Parkinson Student Affairs Director Lucia Garcia are leading the project.
“Adopting an evidence-based, innovative, and comprehensive social enterprise model focused on youth and economic development requires significant, upfront community resources and investment,” says Luke. “A social enterprise offers great potential for promoting the development of youth, families, and communities.”
The MSE Board will divide the R3 grant into three development phases: evaluation, exploration, and program design focused on gaining a better understanding of the issues facing disconnected youth through community hearings, the development of a youth advisory board, and an in-depth review of community assessments. Once a program design is agreed upon and implementation funding is secured, the MSE Board will partner with a local business and establish a pilot program, which will be available to Proviso East High School students and other local youth.
For more than three decades, Loyola University Chicago has collaborated with Maywood and surrounding communities to help address systemic issues such as health equity, violence, and economic development. As of 2019, 51 percent of Maywood residents lived in a cost-burdened household, (where housing costs accounted for more than 30 percent of household budget). Historically, the area has struggled to attract a grocery store and continues to lack a functional business district. Its public school system ranks among the lowest in Illinois.
“With the R3 grant funding, we can continue Loyola Chicago’s critical work in the Maywood community,” says Parkinson Founding Dean Elaine Morrato. “Thank you, Governor Pritzker and Lt. Governor Stratton, for your vision, which allows investments in innovative solutions to address equity here and across the state.”
For questions about the Maywood Social Enterprise or to schedule an interview, please contact Taylor Utzig, HSC Communications Specialist, at tutzig@luc.edu.
About Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health
Loyola University Chicago launched the Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health in Fall 2019 with programs held on the Health Sciences Campus in Maywood, Illinois, and the Lake Shore Campus in Chicago’s Rogers Park. The Parkinson School combines six existing degrees programs (Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science, Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Administration, Master of Science in Clinical Research Methods, Master of Science in Dietetics, Master of Science in Medical Laboratory Science, and Master of Public Health), along with three new programs (Bachelor of Science in Public Health Sciences, Master of Science in Exercise Science, and Master of Science in Health Care Informatics). In Fall 2021, the Parkinson School will launch a new 4+1 BSPH/MPH program. The school is named in honor of alumni Robert L. and Elizabeth M. Parkinson and their family, who provided a $20 million lead gift to create the school and support the development of knowledge and effective practices that will have a national impact on health care accessibility and equity. The Parkinson School builds on the foundations of Loyola’s nationally recognized Stritch School of Medicine and its Biomedical Programs, Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing, and Loyola’s partnership with Trinity Health (known in the Chicago area as Loyola Medicine). Learn more about the Parkinson School, follow us on Twitter @LoyolaParkinson or on Instagram @loyolaparkinson.
About Loyola University Chicago
Founded in 1870, Loyola University Chicago is one of the nation’s largest Jesuit, Catholic universities, with more than 16,600 students. Nearly 11,500 undergraduates call Loyola home. The University has four campuses: three in the greater Chicago area and one in Rome, Italy, as well as course locations in Saigon-Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Vernon Hills, Illinois (Cuneo Mansion and Gardens); and a Retreat and Ecology Campus in Woodstock, Illinois. In addition to the Parkinson School, the University’s 14 schools, colleges, and institutes include: the new School of Environmental Sustainability, Quinlan School of Business, Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing, Stritch School of Medicine, College of Arts and Sciences, School of Communication, School of Continuing and Professional Studies, School of Education, School of Law, School of Social Work, Graduate School, Institute of Pastoral Studies, Institute of Racial Justice, and Arrupe College of Loyola University Chicago. Ranked a top national university by U.S. News & World Report, Loyola is also among a select group of universities recognized for community service and engagement by prestigious national organizations like the Carnegie Foundation and the Corporation for National and Community Service. Learn more about Loyola, “like” us at Facebook.com/LoyolaChicago, or follow us on Twitter @LoyolaChicago or @LoyolaNewsroom.