Antiracist Teaching in Public Health Education

Imagine a classroom bustling with diverse voices, each student driven by a passion not just to learn but to shape a future where equity prevails. This dream scenario is becoming a reality through the Continuous Learning for Antiracist Culture Change (CLARCC) Fellowship. A 15-week program designed to empower public health faculty and staff with antiracist frameworks, CLARCC epitomizes a progressive shift towards an inclusive educational environment.

Why Antiracism Matters Now

Despite US Federal Pressure, the call for antiracist education has intensified over recent years, spurred by the global reckoning with racial injustices and the urgent need for systemic change. Public health education is no exception. A studyat the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California. documented significant advances in integrating antiracism into curricula. The implications of these reforms stretch beyond academics, promising broader cultural impacts in addressing health disparities.

Addressing Systemic Racism in Education

Systemic racism has historically infiltrated educational institutions, including public health schools, perpetuating disparities. Students and faculty alike demand a curriculum that not only recognizes but actively dismantles these structures. The CLARCC Fellowship addresses this need by providing a holistic approach that includes asynchronous learning, coaching, and peer support, all geared toward embedding antiracist theories into everyday practice.

Finding Effective Solutions

Fellows of the CLARCC program don’t just learn about antiracism in theory. They move through a structured, 15-week experience designed to translate reflection into action. The program blends self-paced modules with real-time coaching, peer learning groups, and hands-on projects that push participants to rethink how they teach, advise, and make decisions.

The journey begins with a guided self-assessment, in which fellows examine their own biases, experiences, and positions of power. Through exercises like “story of self” and “story of us,” participants reflect on how their personal and professional identities shape their work. From there, they engage in narrative exploration, connecting individual experiences to broader systems of inequity in public health education.

But what makes CLARCC stand out is its emphasis on real-world application. Each fellow develops a “personal contract” — essentially a commitment to implement a tangible antiracist change in their day-to-day work. These projects vary widely. Some fellows revise course syllabi to include discussions of structural racism. Others redesign advising practices to better support marginalized students. Some focus on improving recruitment, onboarding, or financial accessibility within their institutions.

Throughout the program, fellows are supported with one-on-one coaching, small-group “action learning sets,” and weekly office hours. This structure creates accountability while also giving participants space to experiment, reflect, and adjust their approach in real time.

Key Insight: Lasting Change is Achievable

The results are more than anecdotal. Evaluation data show that participants significantly increased their ability to:

• Critically review teaching materials through an antiracist lens
• Apply antiracist frameworks to curriculum and educational practices
• Identify concrete tools, resources, and examples of antiracist pedagogy in action

Just as importantly, fellows reported feeling more prepared and confident in making these changes. That shift matters. It signals a move from awareness to action.

At the same time, the program also revealed where change is harder. Gains were less consistent in sustaining broader cultural shifts, such as influencing colleagues or embedding antiracist practices across entire departments. That insight highlights a key lesson: individual transformation is necessary, but not sufficient on its own.

In other words, CLARCC shows that meaningful change happens when learning is continuous, applied, and supported, not when it’s limited to one-off workshops. By combining reflection with concrete action and accountability, the program offers a model for how institutions can begin turning antiracist commitments into everyday practice.

Practical Application for Institutions

For public health departments and educational institutions considering similar reforms, the CLARCC Fellowship offers a roadmap:

• Integrate Antiracist Education: Embed antiracism in curricula and teaching practices to foster inclusivity.
• Support Continuous Learning: Use cohort-based approaches that blend learning styles to encourage active faculty participation.
• Assess and Adjust: Regular evaluations of program outcomes can pinpoint strengths and areas for improvement.

Evaluation and Long-Term Goals

While the CLARCC Fellowship has successfully instigated meaningful changes, its impact varies across different areas. Fellows reported significant improvements in course review capabilities, yet institutional culture shifts towards antiracist practice require ongoing efforts. Long-term goal alignment and a commitment from educational leaders to sustain these changes are essential.

Overcoming Barriers

Adoption and scaling of such fellowship programs face challenges, including funding limitations and the need for cultural buy-in across all departmental levels. Additionally, managing retention and participation voluntarily in such programs presents ongoing challenges that require strategic solutions.

Looking to the Future

The next phase for programs like CLARCC involves expanding participation across departments and exploring ways to digitize content to increase accessibility. Continuous feedback loops, incorporating cross-departmental collaboration, and securing resources for sustained initiatives are crucial steps forward.

What This Means in Practice

• Local health departments can model similar programs to promote antiracist practices.
• NGOs may partner with educational institutions to support antiracist training modules.
• Community-based programs can leverage these frameworks to advocate for broader systemic change.

Engaging in Dialogue

How might your organization implement antiracist educational practices? What are the potential challenges you foresee in adopting such frameworks? By addressing these questions, stakeholders at all levels can move towards a more equitable future in public health education.

For further reading on antiracist education in public health, access the full research article here.