State employee chosen for national Minority Leadership Program

HIV planner for the Department of Health and Senior Services, Stephanie Washington, is to attend the 2022-23 Minority Leadership Program.
Submitted photo
HIV planner for the Department of Health and Senior Services, Stephanie Washington, is to attend the 2022-23 Minority Leadership Program. Submitted photo

A Jefferson City-based HIV planner for the state health department is one of 12 people selected from across the nation to attend a national minority leadership program.

Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) employee Stephanie Washington will attend the 2022-23 Minority Leadership Program, presented through the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD).

"I am honored and humbled to be accepted into NASTAD'S 2022 Minority Leadership Program," Washington said. "This is an esteemed opportunity for professionals of color working in HIV/AIDS and viral hepatitis programs."

She added she expects to take away from the program information that will help the state retain more employees who look like her. And she expects to gain knowledge, resources and skills that may contribute to progressive advancements in support of an equitable workforce.

Participants in the program complete two weeks of training, supported by peers and professional coaches who provide support, accountability and practice between training dates.

During training, participants develop insights into themselves as leaders, advocates and public health experts. Trainings and sessions allow participants to foster core skills and values -- enhancing professional development as leaders -- and creating a network of public health professionals of color, striving for health equity and an end to HIV and viral hepatitis, according to a DHSS news release.

Minority Leadership Program serves as a space rooted in social justice for health department staff of color to engage in critical conversations about job advancement, successful staff, project management, effective communication, overcoming institutional barriers to equity, managing emotions and burnout, and identifying racial and gender-based micro aggressions and triggers, according to the release.