Dear Bethesda Project Family,

I wanted to reach out and personally bring your attention to some exciting news. A Bethesda Project partnership has been featured as one of the winning ideas selected for the University of Pennsylvania’s 2017 President’s Engagement Prize, one of the largest honors of its kind in higher education.

Through their project “Homeless Health and Nursing: Building Community Partnerships for a Healthier Future”, Marcus Henderson and Ian McCurry, both in the Penn School of Nursing, will receive funding and Penn-faculty mentorship to integrate innovative healthcare case management into current programs at Bethesda Project. Their project aims to bridge the health-care gaps of homeless people using resources already available in the community. In addition to Bethesda Project, the initiative will also be partnered with the American Public Health Association, the National Nurse-led Care Consortium and the Center for Community Health Care Workers at Penn.

This prestigious honor, competitively awarded annually by Penn President Dr. Amy Gutmann, rewards exceptional Penn students who demonstrate a purpose-driven desire to get out and make a difference in their community, across the country, and around the world. The eight Penn students chosen this year have demonstrated “immense grit, creativity, and leadership,” with projects to take on challenges that “couldn’t be more pressing,” said President Amy Gutmann during their award ceremony. Over the past two years, Penn has awarded nearly $1.5 million in prize funds and living stipends between the President’s Engagement Prize and President’s Innovation Prize.

On behalf of myself and the entire Bethesda staff, we are thrilled to be partnered with this exciting and innovative program that supports our mission of caring for the abandoned poor and minimizing their barriers to healthcare access. Penn’s investment in this project demonstrates the importance of the work that we do and further validates Bethesda Project’s reputation as a top-quality, innovative, and collaborative provider. You can watch a brief video about this exciting new initiative here:

We are honored to be partnering with Marcus, Ian, and the Penn School of Nursing, demonstrating the positive impact we can have when we come together as a community.

Sincerely,

Tina Pagotto, CEO