We are thrilled to feature Ausannette García-Goyette, Senior Program Officer at the Irving Harris Foundation and a key leader in Illinois’ State Exchange for Maternal Health initiatives, in our latest Partner Spotlight.

This new brief looks at how insurance shapes patient experience with recommendations for ensuring New Jerseyans receive quality care across their perinatal journeys.

Funders from nearly all 50 states met in Washington, DC, to advance state-level efforts to improve birth outcomes during the 2024 State of Birth Equity (SOBE) State Exchange Convening.

Our latest Partner Spotlight features Cecile Edwards, Executive Director of the New Jersey Birth Equity Funders Alliance (NJBEFA). Co-founded by CHAP in 2021, NJBEFA focuses on amplifying the voices of birth equity leaders, investing in community-based organizations, and building the infrastructure for cross-sector partnerships.

On Thursday, September 19th, CHAP Program Manager Jhenielle Reynolds joined a group of birth equity advocates to testify before the New Jersey Assembly Aging and Human Services Committee regarding the inequities faced by individuals who choose to give birth outside hospital settings.

CHAP’s partnership with the Alma program began in 2022. Alma, which recently expanded to New Jersey, uses a peer-to-peer approach to maternal mental health, uplifting the lived experiences of birthing people and parents of color.

CHAP is pleased to be part of the planning committee for the inaugural Birth Equity State Exchange Convening. The convening is a funder-only event dedicated to advancing birth outcomes at the state-level and will be held from October 27-29 in Washington, DC.

CHAP is introducing students at Princeton’s School of Public and International Affairs to the maternal mortality crisis in New Jersey. In addition to studying the conditions surrounding the state’s historically poor maternal health outcomes, students are exploring the policy and practice of the birth equity movement.

CHAP Co-Directors Raquel Mazon Jeffers and Wendy McWeeny hosted a conversation on improving maternal and child health outcomes through partnership during the Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs (AMCHP) annual conference.

As founding members of the Maternal Mental Health Equity Fund, CHAP is honored to announce the recipients of a new grant designed to fund models of maternal mental health care built in and by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities. Seven organizations will each receive $75,000 per year for three years.

As founding members of the Maternal Mental Health Equity Fund, CHAP is honored to announce the recipients of a new grant designed to fund models of maternal mental health care built in and by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities.

Thank you for your guidance, inspiration, and collaboration. Our commitment to rethinking philanthropy has only grown this year, and we will continue to champion organizations, programs, and policies focused on birth equity and community health in 2024.

Funders for Birth Justice & Equity (FBJE) has released a new landscape report providing an overview of the state of philanthropic funding for birth equity. The report focuses on who makes up the current landscape of funders, what they are funding, and how they are integrating an equity lens in their practices and approaches.

A new report from Every Mother Counts (EMC) and the Institute for Medicaid Innovation (IMI) details findings from a CHAP-funded learning series focused on expand access to quality, respectful, and equitable maternity care through Medicaid.

The Maternal Mental Health Equity Fund will be investing in a national cohort of organizations and leaders delivering models of care built in and by Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) communities.