The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' National Institutes of Health recently
honored pioneers across the country and their best practices models of eliminating health
disparities. Luvenia Cowart, Ed.D., R.N., professor of practice in the Department of Health and
Wellness in Syracuse University's College of Human Ecology, was recognized with the Health
Disparities Excellence Award for her leadership of the Genesis Health Project Network.
The Minority Health and Health Disparities Honor Awards Ceremony was held in mid-
December in Maryland as part of the NIH Summit: The Science of Eliminating Health
Disparities. It paid tribute to individuals, groups and organizations across the country that have
made extraordinary contributions in science, practice or policy toward the improvement of
minority health or the elimination of health disparities.
Donna E. Shalala, former secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services;
David Satcher, 16th surgeon general of the United States; U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-
Mass.); and Bill Clinton, 42nd president of the United States, were honored with Health
Disparities Lifetime Achievement Awards at the event.
The Health Disparities Excellence Award presented to Cowart recognizes outstanding
contributions in the field of health disparities that: have significantly impacted a substantial
number of people; catalyzed new intersections and interactions among the fields of science,
practice and policy; resulted in significant actions that lead to improved health outcomes in
health disparity communities; and demonstrated a measurable record of accomplishment in
improving minority health or in support of the elimination of health disparities.
"Health engagement in nontraditional settings has made a vast difference in the lives of many.
Churches remain the cornerstone of the minority community and are pivotal to the health of
those communities," says Cowart. "This national award simply legitimizes these efforts and the
commitment of our church pastors, lay health advocates, community partners and sponsors as
we continue to fuel the vision to eliminate health disparities among African Americans and
people of color."
Launched in 2004, the Genesis Project is part of a larger minority health initiative, in
partnership with the College of Human Ecology, corporate donors, government agencies and
other regional partners. The multi-year, community-based initiative aims to reduce health
disparities, obesity and its related health risks, and to promote healthy lifestyles among African
Americans by partnering with community organizations to identify and address health needs
in the Syracuse and Central New York areas, though the reach of influence the Genesis Project
has had is national in scope.
"The Genesis Health Project Network is truly a model of excellence for communities across the
country and a good example of the critical role that communities play in the elimination of
health disparities," says John Ruffin, director of the National Center on Minority Health and
Health Disparities.
Under Cowart's leadership, the Genesis Project has accomplished numerous milestones in
addressing health disparities in African Americans in collaboration with the Syracuse
community, including health seminars, fitness programs, educational programs at barber
shops, and healthy lifestyle activities with churches and universities.
One of the health promotion programs sponsored through the Genesis Project is the
Barbershop Education Program, which has gained national attention and funding through
efforts to reduce the prostate cancer death rate among African American males, which is twice
that of white males. Many men avoid doctors' offices, but they need to make regular trips to
the barbershop. The Barbershop Education Program rotates six to eight sessions at barbershops
in Syracuse each year. Educators ask customers if they've been tested, stress the importance of
diet and exercise, and offer referrals to community health care agencies where they can get
tested at minimal costs.
The barbershops also hand out brochures, show an educational video and hang posters. Many
customers have been tested and talk openly about their experiences, which continues the
educational cycle. One owner explained he knows of several customers who have had
operations because of the screenings. A prostate cancer survivor explained that men feel
comfortable there (the barbershop) and they'll talk about topics they might not address in other
places. An integral part of this program is the Prostate Cancer Education Council, which is an
interdisciplinary advisory group of physicians, educators, government officials, prostate cancer
survivors and interested community lay persons that meet periodically to discuss prostate
cancer issues and men's health concerns.
Tennis Shoes Sunday is a Genesis Project annual event held with congregants and
pastors from nine Syracuse-area churches who participate in a two- to three-mile walks
following Sunday services.
The Genesis Project's Campus Community Social Entrepreneurship Program partners
Syracuse University with the churches to provide six two-hour workshops to help
congregants develop leadership skills necessary to create and strengthen their church
health ministries and sustain health promotion planning. Also as part of the Genesis
Project, Bridging the Gap: Community-Based Learning Experiences partners SU
Health and Wellness students with Genesis Project programs through 25-hour
internships. The students, as future health-care leaders, policy makers and
practitioners, learn to address health disparities and other major public health concerns
that plague poor and underserved populations.
One of the notable changes resulting from the Genesis Project is evident in traditional menu
planning for church-sponsored events in the Syracuse area. At nine inner-city churches, most
congregants can remember summer picnics and year-round fellowship activities traditionally
including fried foods, potato salad, white bread and soda. Now these church kitchens serve
baked entrees, tossed salad, whole wheat bread, and one-percent milk or water. Effective
January 2008, pastors from these churches have pledged to instruct church food preparers
about "Fry-Free Zones," that is, avoiding fried foods at church fellowship events.
Cowart is a Robert Wood Johnson Executive Nurse Fellow, with academic interests focused on
public health and health education among minorities, community partnerships and
interdisciplinary collaborations, and health disparities and mental health issues.
In addition to the thousands of community members who have benefited from programs of the
Genesis Project, numerous individuals have been involved in creating and coordinating the
project's initiatives, including the program coordinator, Betty Brown, who has been with the
project since its inception and instrumental in its ongoing success. A retired registered nurse
from SUNY Upstate Medical University, where she worked for 30 years, Brown specializes in
radiation oncology.
Also included is the Pastors' Health Council, an advisory group of nine pastors from
participating churches in the Genesis Health Project Network. Twenty-five lay health advocates
from each of the participating churches are being trained as health leaders for Genesis Project
programs in their respective churches and within the community.
Syracuse University's Scholarship in Action vision encourages ways higher education can
address the serious challenges ahead locally and globally. The Genesis Project has created a
strong foundation to address health disparities locally and, through its national recognition by
the National Institutes of Health, has provided a best practice model for other communities to
follow.
"It is fitting that Dr. Cowart receive this NIH recognition and award for her consistent attention
in teaching, research and practice in health disparities in the African American communities
and thus illuminating one of the most serious injustices in the education and delivery of health
care in America," says Diane Lyden Murphy, dean of the College of Human Ecology. "Dr.
Cowart's work is an exquisite example of public scholarship and Scholarship in Action."
Funding providers for the Genesis Project include Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Central New
York Region; the Rosamond Gifford Foundation; the SU College of Human Ecology; the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services; the New York State Office of Minority Health; the
Prevent Cancer Foundation; Wal-Mart Stores Inc.; Wegmans Food Markets; and Amgen
Pharmaceuticals.
Other collaborating partners include Cornell University Cooperative Extension of Onondaga
County; Family Ties Network Inc.; Onondaga Community College; the New York State Small
Business Development Center; and SUNY Upstate Medical University.
To read more about the Genesis Health Project Network, visit http://HumanEcology.syr.edu.
About the College of Human Ecology at Syracuse University
The College of Human Ecology is dedicated to excellence in professional academic education
and integrates Scholarship in Action as a philosophy and method in all of its degree programs.
The college brings together a rich history of academic programs whose signatures of social
responsibility and justice join new and evolving majors reflective of educating global citizens
whose leadership can-and does-change the places and peoples where they live and work.
Previously known as the College of Human Services and Health Professions until it was
renamed in 2007, the College of Human Ecology hosts seven departments with strong roots in
SU history: Child and Family Studies; Health and Wellness; Hospitality Management;
Marriage and Family Therapy; Nutrition Science and Dietetics; Sport Management; and the
School of Social Work.
