Established in 1805, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (the NYC Health Department) is the oldest and largest health department in the country. Our mission is to protect and improve the health of all New Yorkers, in service of a vision of a city in which all New Yorkers can realize their full health potential, regardless of who they are, how old they are, where they are from, or where they live.

As a world-renowned public health agency with a history of building transformative public health programming and infrastructure, innovating in science and scholarship to advance public health knowledge, and responding to urgent public health crises from New York City’s yellow fever outbreak in 1822, to the COVID-19 pandemic we are a hub for public health innovation, expertise, and programs, and services. We serve as the population health strategist, and policy, and planning authority for the City of New York, while also having a vast impact on national and international public policy, including programs and services focused on food and nutrition, anti-tobacco support, chronic disease prevention, HIV/AIDS treatment, family and child health, environmental health, mental health, and racial and social justice work, among others.

Our Agency’s five strategic priorities, building off a recently-completed strategic planning process emerging from the COVID-19 emergency, are:
1) To re-envision how the Health Department prepares for and responds to health emergencies, with a focus on building a “response-ready” organization, with faster decision-making, transparent public communications, and stronger surveillance and bridges to healthcare systems 2) Address and prevent chronic and diet-related disease, including addressing rising rates of childhood obesity and the impact of diabetes, and transforming our food systems to improve nutrition and enhance access to healthy foods
3) Address the second pandemic of mental illness including: reducing overdose deaths, strengthening our youth mental health systems, and supporting people with serious mental illness
4) Reduce black maternal mortality and make New York a model city for women’s health
5) Mobilize against and combat the health impacts of climate change

Our 7,000-plus team members bring extraordinary diversity to the work of public health. True to our value of equity as a foundational element of all of our work, and a critical foundation to achieving population health impact in New York City, the NYC Health Department has been a leader in recognizing and dismantling racism’s impacts on the health of New Yorkers and beyond. In 2021, the NYC Board of Health declared racism as a public health crisis. With commitment to advance anti-racist public health practices that dismantle systems that perpetuate inequitable power, opportunity and access, the NYC Health Department continues to work in and with communities and community organizations to increase their access to health services and decrease avoidable health outcomes.

BUREAU DESCRIPTION:

The Division of Center for Health Equity & Community Wellness (CHECW) uses a racial and social justice approach to eliminate health inequities for those who are most marginalized in New York City and to reduce overall premature mortality from the leading causes of preventable death with the vision that every New Yorker will live in a thriving neighborhood with equitable access to resources that help support healthy individuals and communities. This division unifies and strengthens the Department's line of work directed at eliminating racial inequities for preventable health conditions, which are rooted in historical and contemporary injustices and discrimination, including racism. CHECW's aim is to eliminate racial inequities resulting in premature mortality, with a focus on chronic disease, by addressing the social and environmental factors that impact health. The goal of this renewed approach is to increase placed-based investment in priority neighborhoods with community programming and services based on epidemiology, influence and leverage the health system to promote whole person care; and intensify the agency's approach to tackle big salt and sugar, big tobacco, the built environment and other determinants of health.

The Bureau of Health Equity Capacity Building (BHECB) seeks to implement collective action strategies to build community power and capacity to address health inequities and the social determinants of health. The bureau is comprised of the Policy and Partnerships Unit, to align the agency's programming to address the social determinants of health and root causes of health inequities including structural racism; they Health Equity Capacity Unit, to increase placed-based investments to priority neighborhoods and work with communities and neighborhood to build capacity to confront health inequities; the Neighborhood Behavioral Health and Resiliency Unit, will implement trauma informed community methods to prepare, prevent and respond to neighborhood crisis, and close the gap in community-based behavioral health services, increase access to early intervention and address the stigma of treatment. The Bureau of Health Equity Capacity Building seeks to hire a Climate Health Director.

DUTIES WILL INCLUDE BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO:
Manage the Climate Health Program, including fostering external collaboration and information sharing, under the leadership of the BHECB Assistant Commissioner and collaboration with the Executive Director of Environmental Health Policy.
Conduct extensive research related to agency and divisional climate health policy agenda.
Research and assess scientific and grey literature to identify evidence-based strategies for promoting climate resiliency both on the physical and social infrastructures.
Evaluate existing programs to identify inequitable practices, service gaps, and opportunities to amplify climate justice strategies.
Coordinate with Executive Director of the Community Resilience and Response Unit.
Translate and apply data and research findings in climate health and other environmental outcomes to programmatic design, monitoring, and communication.
In coordination with Bureau of Environmental Surveillance and Policy (BESP) create and manage the Climate Health Program Agenda, including program evaluation and tracking accomplishments and coordinating with the ED for Environmental Health Policy on budgetary, program, and policy agendas.
Supervise 2 staff with expertise in community engagement, social resiliency, and climate health program management.
Oversee workstreams on health equity in climate health and community resiliency programming, providing leadership-level expertise, as needed, for contracts, program development and partner relationships.
Assist with environmental health emergency preparedness and response work, including provide guidance and expertise to various agency-wide Emergency Response Groups.


**IMPORTANT NOTES TO ALL CANDIDATES:

Please note: If you are called for an interview you will be required to bring to your interview copies of original documentation, such as:
- A document that establishes identity for employment eligibility, such as: A Valid U.S. Passport, Permanent Resident Card/Green Card, or Driver’s license.

- Proof of Education according to the education requirements of the civil service title.

- Current Resume

- Proof of Address/NYC Residency dated within the last 60 days, such as: Recent Utility Bill (i.e. Telephone, Cable, Mobile Phone)

Additional documentation may be required to evaluate your qualification as outlined in this posting’s “Minimum Qualification Requirements” section. Examples of additional documentation may be, but not limited to: college transcript, experience verification or professional trade licenses.

If after your interview you are the selected candidate you will be contacted to schedule an on-boarding appointment. By the time of this appointment you will be asked to produce the originals of the above documents along with your original Social Security card.

**LOAN FORGIVENESS

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at StudentAid.gov/PSLF.

"FINAL APPOINTMENTS ARE SUBJECT TO OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT & BUDGET APPROVAL”

1. For Assignment Level I (only physical, biological and environmental sciences and public health) A master's degree from an accredited college or university with a specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological or environmental science or in public health.
To be appointed to Assignment Level II and above, candidates must have:
1. A doctorate degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and one year of full-time experience in a responsible supervisory, administrative or research capacity in the appropriate field of specialization; or
2. A master's degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and three years of responsible full-time research experience in the appropriate field of specialization; or
3. Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least a master's degree in an appropriate field of specialization and at least two years of experience described in "2" above. Two years as a City Research Scientist Level I can be substituted for the experience required in "1" and "2" above.

NOTE:
Probationary Period
Appointments to this position are subject to a minimum probationary period of one year.

Demonstrated experience working in high-need communities with skills in creating linkages, building coalitions, and developing strategic partnerships and programmatic deliverables. Experience or training in scientific communication, user-centered design, climate communication/marketing. Experience and/or a strong interest in the public health impacts of air pollution, extreme heat, and other public health educational touch points. Strong background working in environmental health, public health, or sustainability policy. Ability to be responsive to multiple stakeholders from governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations. Strong organizational, written and oral communication skills.

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.