The NYC Preparedness and Recovery Institute, formerly the NYC Pandemic Response Institute (PRI), a landmark initiative led by Columbia University, with key partner CUNY Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy, is conducting a comprehensive review of NYC’s COVID-19 response across various sectors. After analyzing hundreds of reports and articles, we developed a draft set of recommendations and last summer convened the PRI COVID-19 Review Assembly, bringing together over 100 NYC leaders and experts to refine these recommendations and shape evidence-based guidance for future public health crises.
Now, we’re inviting NYC community leaders, those most in tune with local and neighborhood needs during the pandemic, to participate in the PRI COVID-19 Community Convenings. Your insights will help ensure our recommendations reflect an inclusive, equity-driven approach to public health emergencies. Stipends for participation are available upon request and subject to eligibility, see below!
Participation is fully virtual and includes attending:
- Orientation on March 26, 2:00–3:00 PM
- One of the following:
- A three-hour borough specific session in English (2:00–5:00 PM) during the weeks of March 31 or April 7
- A three-hour language specific session in Spanish or Mandarin (2:00–5:00 PM) the week of April 14
During these sessions, we’ll share our latest findings and draft recommendations. We’ll then gather your feedback, revise, and finalize the recommendations. Participants should be leaders of local, neighborhood organizations that can share the perspectives of their communities.
Stipends for Community Expertise
PRI is committed to supporting community expertise. We recognize the value of your contributions and provide a stipend for participation in these community convenings. As part of a pilot program, PRI will provide $35/hour for participation in these convenings, anticipating 4 hours of labor for all activities.
If you are an unpaid volunteer or a representative of an organization with an operating budget under $5 million and a strong history of working collaboratively with the community, you are eligible for the stipend. However, participation in PRI activities that are considered part of your regular job responsibilities (i.e., if you are already being compensated by your employer for this work) is not eligible for a stipend.
We are still determining the administrative process for distributing stipends over the coming months and will share more details as they become available. If interested, after registering, please request your stipend here by April 15.
Following these convenings, we’ll release a final, publicly available set of community-validated recommendations to guide an equitable public health emergency response. These recommendations will help ensure that academia, business, civil society, and government work together to support NYC through future health crises.
Are you a local community leader ready to contribute to this critical conversation? If so, sign up below! If not, please share this invitation with other community leaders who can help shape the future of NYC’s public health preparedness.