UIC-2017-104 – The LEAD Experience (Legislative Education & Advocacy Development)

The Legislative Education and Advocacy Development program (LEAD) is an educational course designed to provide health professionals with the tools needed to communicate with legislators about health policy issues The LEAD Experience aims to produce individuals who are capable of affecting political change by effectively analyzing health policy and conveying their analyses to legislators Participants in LEAD will undergo didactic and experiential learning in the form of lectures and presentations to local and state legislators The program is comprised of two main parts: didactics and experiential learning – Didactics – Students will learn to create legislative briefs while learning about the policy-formulation process at the local and state levels Experiential – Students will present their briefs in front of a mock panel comprised of guest experts for feedback. Ultimately, the students will meet with legislators to present their policy analyses and recommendations This 2 week program is held during an active legislative session in order to conclude with a visit with a state legislator as part of the final presentation. Nelson Grihalde grihalde@otm.uic.edu 312-996-4129