Elm City Initiatives

In addition to ongoing community service, YSPH faculty, staff, and students support Yale’s home city of New Haven through long-term partnerships and initiatives with community organizations and residents. Some examples follow.

Coordinated Food Assistance Network

In New Haven, community partners, including YSPH, formed a coalition to address systems-level issues in the local food assistance system, working through the Greater New Haven Coordinated Food Assistance Network (CFAN). The goal is to improve access to food while addressing inequity within the food system. In April 2025, CFAN successfully advocated for the allocation of over $345,000 in funds for food assistance in the City of New Haven budget.

A new building opening in 2025 will welcome Food as Medicine programs. will house a food “farmacy,” a demonstration kitchen, and community room to support nutrition education and community connections. Through these programs health care providers prescribe fresh, nutritious foods as part of a patient’s treatment plan. Regular access to nutritious food can significantly improve health outcomes, reducing the need for medications and lowering health care costs over time. The Community Alliance for Research & Engagement (CARE) (co-housed at Southern Connecticut State University and YSPH) as well as the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center (PRC) are partnering with Fair Haven Community Health Clinic to develop the programs.

The Health Equity Fellowship Program

The Health Equity Fellowship Program was developed in 2020 in response to emergency needs of the community as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically by placing YSPH students with organizations to provide capacity and support to address community-identified issues. Supported by YSPH funding, the program also provides a stipend to hosting community agencies.

The Healthier Greater New Haven Partnership

The Healthier Greater New Haven Partnership was formed in 2010 to help address the health needs of the Greater New Haven community. This community includes the city of New Haven and the towns of Bethany, Branford, East Haven, Guilford, Hamden, Madison, Milford, North Branford, North Haven, Orange, West Haven, and Woodbridge. YSPH faculty and staff have supported this effort for many years, including serving on multiple committees leading the Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA).

New Haven Public Health Day

New Haven Public Health Day: Since 2020, New Haven Public School (NHPS) students participate in an annual “Public Health Day,” a partnership between YSPH and Yale Pathways to Science, to learn about critical public health issues affecting their community. The goal is to introduce NHPS students to public health as a field and potential career.

Led by YSPH faculty, staff, and students, the high schoolers explore important topics that include health messaging in music, storytelling for public health issues, addressing homelessness, gun violence, and public health advocacy. They also have the opportunity to design their own health technology that can benefit the local community.

Shawn Lang Legacy HIV Health Equity & Social Justice Fellowship (HESJF)

The Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS (CIRA) at Yale University established this fellowship in 2022 to support and promote community-engaged student work focused on equitable HIV outcomes in New Haven. In collaboration with the YSPH Heaney Fellowship, the annual fellowship provides assistance for student-led research and field work in HIV-related areas.