Cleo Caldwell is on a ‘personal mission’ to support students

Professor emerita recently retired from Michigan Public Health

February 28, 2024

By Bob Cunningham

For nearly 30 years, Cleo Caldwell’s impact on students’ lives has been felt inside and outside the walls of the University of Michigan School of Public Health.

Now through her generous gift to Michigan Public Health, she is making sure that her legacy of putting students first will last well beyond her lifetime.

By creating the Caldwell Health Equity Fellowship Fund, she will make attending the School of Public Health more affordable for students with an interest in conducting research or engaging in practice activities focused on achieving health equity.

“It was always a priority for me as chair to raise funds for student support, and I’m honored that I’m in a position now to make my own gift,” she said. “I’ve made it a personal mission to help.”

Caldwell, professor emerita, recently retired from Michigan Public Health, where she began her career as an assistant professor and finished as the chair of the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education and director of the Center for Research on Ethnicity, Culture and Health.

Her reputation and impact is well-known beyond Ann Arbor and the state of Michigan.

Caldwell earned a master’s degree in Psychology and a PhD in Social Psychology from the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts from the University of Michigan. As a social psychologist with expertise in psychosocial and environmental factors influencing the health and well-being of Black populations, Caldwell’s work includes intervention and basic research involving survey techniques with adults, adolescents and families. She also has expertise in conducting community-based participatory research and developing community-academic partnerships to design and evaluate health interventions for Black youth and their families.

She has extensive experience conducting research to understand health risk behaviors and mental health of ethnically diverse adolescents, including African American and Caribbean Black youth.

Youth—particularly students—have always had a special place for Caldwell’s professional and personal goals.

“This fellowship fund is a commitment from me to contribute additional financial resources to help more of our outstanding students,” Caldwell said. “I’m very proud of what the department is doing in terms of supporting students, but there continues to be financial need.”

Caldwell said while her initial contribution may be modest, over time it will grow and be able to fund Michigan Public Health master’s and PhD students as they contribute to the health equity work being undertaken by the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education.

“Students receive a world-class education at the University of Michigan,” she said. “I want to make sure that more students who want to come to Michigan Public Health can come here.

“Most of the students who come into our master’s and PhD programs at Michigan Public Health have an interest in making a difference in people’s lives. Our students have learned about the significance of addressing health equity as a means for improving the public’s health. This concept is an important part of how we train students in terms of what we teach, the kinds of experiences they have when they work on research projects and when they work in practice settings.

“Eliminating or reducing health inequities is the goal. It’s no longer simply identifying population differences but determining what we can do to improve the public’s health.”

Caldwell, who grew up in Washington, DC, has first-hand experience in how expensive an education can be, especially for an out-of-state student.

“There was no state university in DC at the time that I went to college,” she said. “Therefore, I was an out-of-state student no matter where I went to school from undergraduate all the way through obtaining my PhD here at the University of Michigan. Although my tuition costs were extraordinary, I was fortunate because I relied on campus and external fellowships and scholarships to pay for my education. Along the way, I met numerous people who were dedicated to making sure that diverse groups of students had opportunities to achieve a quality education. I benefited enormously from that strategy.”

And now, Caldwell wants to repay that kindness to others through the Caldwell Health Equity Fellowship Fund.

“I noticed early in my career that a number of students who entered our Master of Public Health degree program ended up graduating with an enormous amount of student debt because they had to take out multiple loans to attend or they had to work jobs not related to their education to survive,” she said. 

“Over the years, we have improved our level of funding to students, but we still have a large percentage of students who are not getting the level of funding that would allow them to fully focus on their education. Who knows what contributions recipients will make to improving the public’s health as graduate students with additional funding? This work could be the cornerstone of their future careers.”

At Michigan Public Health, donors have numerous ways beyond cash giving for making an impact. Through a popular provision referred to as the IRA Charitable Rollover, donors can satisfy their required minimum distribution, while avoiding taxes on the income and creating a new fund at Michigan Public Health.

“I hope this fund will grow over time to become a productive financial resource within the department for students,” Caldwell said. “Knowing that others have already contributed to this fund motivates me to believe that working together we can succeed with this goal. I’m so appreciative to everyone who has already supported this fellowship fund.”

Attending the annual Michigan Public Health Scholarship and Awards Dinner the past several years certainly had an impact on Caldwell in that regard.

“You sit at the table, and you are surrounded by students who have received and benefited from the gifts that people have made,” she said. “You hear their stories about how grateful they are and what they can do now because of having one less loan or being able to work within the department or communities to support their educational experience. I saw first-hand how appreciative those students were and how satisfied the donors were that their donations were being used to make a difference in students’ lives.

“It becomes a part of a living legacy that allows me to pay it forward. I’ve been fortunate through the exceptional mentorship experiences that I have had as well as the numerous fellowships and funding opportunities that allowed me to achieve a successful academic career. I stand on the shoulders of others who had the vision and foresight to set up different types of fellowships and opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds.

“The Department of Health Behavior and Health Education was my academic home for a very long time. I believe in its training mission and vision, which makes it a natural fit for the Caldwell Health Equity Fellowship Fund. Together we can make a difference!”

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