Welcome to the Workforce Development and Capacity Building Page!
The Workforce Development and Capacity Building (WD&CB) team is responsible for putting AMCHP’s “Workforce” strategic plan goal into action. The team works across the organization and with an array of partners to foster the development of a skilled, flexible, and diverse workforce that meets the current and anticipated needs of women, children, youth, and families. We define “Workforce” holistically but have a particular interest in having the right people in the right state/territorial Title V positions at the right times – and ensuring that staff are adequately trained and supported.
Grounding
Our motivation is the distance between current workforce realities (with respect to age and racial composition, turnover, job satisfaction, training, and other variables) and AMCHP’s bold vision. We monitor this distance by collecting and analyzing MCH workforce data from a variety of sources.
Our processes are aligned with AMCHP’s core values and steadfast commitment to dismantling structural racism and rebuilding the systems that serve our communities in ways that center racial and other forms of equity.
Our work is framed by the MCH Leadership Competencies that identify foundational knowledge and skills for professionals across roles and settings.
The WD&CB team also supports AMCHP’s Workforce and Leadership Development Committee, which contributes to the team’s portfolio of projects and directs organizational priorities in this area.
Operating Philosophies
The WD&CB team:
- Believes that leadership is a practice, not a status or title.
- Strives to develop individuals in the context of systems change and change systems by investing in individuals, i.e. we apply a “workforce lens” across AMCHP efforts and help others do the same.
- Holds ourselves accountable first and foremost to MCH populations and the communities in which they live.
- Recognizes that opportunities to build knowledge and skills (at the individual level) and capacity (at the systems level) have not always been afforded equitably.
Current Projects
The WD&CB team focuses on breadth and depth of impact; both are needed to facilitate and sustain meaningful change. To this end, we engage in three primary types of efforts:
The WD&CB team partners with federal agency staff, national organizations, and community members (including families and others with lived experience) to extend the reach of individualized and focused investments, and to ensure that broad-based supports have relevancy for specific stakeholders.
Staff
 | Ben Kaufman, MSW (pronouns: he/him/his) Associate Director
Click here to learn more about Ben’s work and background.
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 | Grace Guerrero Ramirez, MSPH (pronouns: she/her/hers) Program Manager
Click here to learn more about Grace’s work and background.
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Explore Site Content
MCH workforce data
- Learn about how AMCHP contributes to the framing and collection of MCH workforce data, and review current and historical analyses.
Leadership Lab
- AMCHP's flagship cohort-based leadership development program for Title V professionals that incorporates structured learning opportunities, peer networking, and mentorship.
MCH Workforce Resources
- A curated clearinghouse of training and capacity building resources, including navigational guidance for different types of MCH professionals along their career arcs.
Scholarships
- AMCHP offers scholarships to support the career development of emerging MCH leaders.