Mississippi Institute for Improvement of Geographic Minority Health


Chris Arthur, PhD

Contact Project Manager: Conswello Harrion

Education and Awareness Core – Dr. Chris Arthur leads the efforts of this dynamic core. The goal is to increase the number of healthcare practitioners in underserved areas and improve the level of health awareness by residents of rural, medically underserved areas. Partners and subawards provide effective programs as follows:

  • Rust College – Dr. Gemma Beckley leads the Families First Program and Resource Center. This program focuses on Increasing Health Literacy.
  • Mississippi Valley State University – This program focuses on establishing a functional Office of Minority Health to participate with the myriad of programs currently underway in the Mississippi Delta.
  • UMC – The Rural Scholars component of the Profe ssional Portal Tract Program targets increasing the number of students seeking entry to medical and dental school.  A quality Rural Health experience will serve as a catalyst to consider serving in rural areas after training.
  • UMC – The Pipeline Programs are headed by Dr. Jasmine Taylor and are comprised of the EXCEL, MEDCORPS and Reading Institute initiatives. These programs improve ability to do scientific reading, interpret scientific data, get positive heath career experience and focused training on pre-medical and pre-dental testing skills.
  • UMC – Occupational Spanish is a series of courses and training that emanate from the Institute and is expertly taught by Christianne Pinell-Jansen, MPH. The program has led to law enforcement and health professional personnel being better able to help Latino persons seeking health care navigate a complex system.