Leading the Charge for Gender Equity

Prominent Sponsoring Organizations Lead the Charge for Change in Gender Equity through the Carol Emmott Fellowship for Women Leaders in Health

Oakland, CA (October 2016)—The Carol Emmott Fellowship, a newly formed fellowship for women leaders in health aimed at addressing gender inequity in health leadership, will launch its inaugural program on November 1, 2016. In support of this ground-breaking program, which is based at the Public Health Institute, a select group of 12 esteemed organizations are committed to sponsoring this year’s first class of distinguished fellows.

The Carol Emmott Fellowship was created in honor of Carol B. Emmott (1946-2015), whose life work augmented the impact of women leaders in the health field. The impressive list of founding sponsors includes Carilion Clinic, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health System, Duke University Health System, Henry Ford Health System, John Muir Health, Lahey Hospital and Medical Center, Marshfield Clinic Health System, Palo Alto Medical Foundation, Rush University Medical Center, University of Pennsylvania Health System, Yale New Haven Health System, and BDC Advisors / University of Miami Health System. Founding sponsors will work with the Carol Emmott Fellowship to shape a growing network of remarkable women who are ready to move into senior leadership positions across all sectors of health.

“While the need for smart, savvy, caring leaders in this turbulent era of healthcare has never been more important, women leaders continue to be significantly underrepresented in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), the C-suite, and the Boardroom,” said Carilion Clinic’s President and CEO, Nancy Howell Agee. Agee, who was recently selected to lead the American Hospital Association’s Board of Trustees in 2018, nominated one of the Fellowship’s first candidates on behalf of Carilion. Over three-fourths of the entire healthcare workforce is comprised of women, yet the vast majority of senior leadership positions across health fields are held by men. To address this need for change, fellows will enhance their leadership capacities and influence by completing an impact project in their health community. In addition, fellows will be offered specialized mentoring by a notable Advisory Board and a cross-section of national senior executives in health.

“Carol Emmott actively sought out strong, talented women leaders as she assisted many healthcare organizations in building their management teams. We believe that the Fellowship is one way for our System to support more intentionally the development of talented women,” said Marna Borgstrom, President and CEO of Yale New Haven Health System. Joanne Conroy, CEO of Lahey Hospital and Medical Center noted, “The Carol Emmott Fellowship is a wonderful opportunity for both established and mid-career women leaders to become part of a self-perpetuating pipeline of talent through formative experiences and mentoring opportunities. Through this Fellowship, a generation of women leaders in health will contribute to transforming our system of care and expanding our focus to eliminate disparities in leadership and throughout healthcare.”

Members of the inaugural class will be announced in early November.

The Carol Emmott Fellowship for Women Leaders in Health is designed to further outstanding mid-career women leaders by developing the networks and leadership capabilities required to create constructive change in the health field. It is an independent program housed within the Public Health Institute, a California nonprofit. To learn more about the Carol Emmott Fellowship, please visit us at CarolEmmottFellowship.org.