Underlying the Student Health Coalition (SHC) was a set of values, perspectives, and priorities about how health care should be delivered in a rural setting, how communities should be involved in their own care and development, and how a just society might be created. This patchwork philosophy of social change was neither fully formed nor entirely embraced by every SHC participant. It also changed over time, as each summer brought a new crop of students and professionals. But most participants, health workers, and community workers alike understood that the SHC’s approach to community-based health care represented a radical departure from the status quo. Most endorsed the core concepts behind the SHC’s attempts to reinvent primary health care, organize for community power, and expand the boundaries of professional practice. (More on this underlying philosophy can be found under THEMES.)
Bill Dow as a community organizer in Appalachia
Maureen O’Connell and Charles “Boomer” Winfrey reflect on Bill Dow’s character and personal philosophy about community organizing. They describe him as an other-oriented person driven by creative, actionable service and mutually respectful relationships best illustrated by his perception of and… Continued
Reflections on the SHC’s approach to community healthcare
Charles “Boomer” Winfrey and Maureen O’Connell consider what set the Student Health Coalition (SHC) apart from other community development efforts in the Appalachian region of East Tennessee. Boomer focuses on the Coalition’s and Save Our Cumberland Mountains’ (SOCM’s) value of… Continued
Community reception of Student Health Coalition participants
Dal Macon shares how local communities perceived, received, and supported Student Health Coalition (SHC) participants, as well as how their approach to relationship-building manifested. Full footage of interview with Dal Macon. Continued
Was the Student Health Coalition radical? Dal Macon responds.
Dal Macon distinguishes the Student Health Coalition’s (SHC’s) activism from other “radical” movements of the time. He expounds on the context of what it meant to be “radical”, how it was generally perceived, and why SHC participants didn’t identify as… Continued
The focal role of listening in community organizing
Dal Macon highlights the Student Health Coalition’s (SHC’s) emphasis on listening as the primary agent of sustainable, lasting community change. Solidifying its importance, Dal shares how this philosophy impacted his long-term relationship-building with community members and overall connection to the… Continued
Dal Macon’s introduction to Bill Dow and the Student Health Coalition
Dal Macon shares his first impressions of Bill Dow and what attracted him to the Student Health Coalition’s (SHC’s) unique approach to community organizing. He frames the SHC and its work of rural healthcare delivery as a mission of listeners… Continued
Hearts of Gold
Brought to us by Margaret Ecker and others involved in its 2013 production, this special collection of insights from several Student Health Coalition (SHC) figureheads in the 1970s features Bill Dow, Bill Corr, Carolyn Burr, Dal Macon, and Marie Cirillo–among… Continued
Challenges facing nurse practitioners
Outside the old clinic building of what used to be Douglas Community Health Center, Margaret Ecker and Jean Carney discuss the multitude of challenges facing nurse practitioners and what legislative movement’s been made to overcome adversity of such restrictive practice.… Continued
Bob Hartmann on the importance of defining health beyond the physical
Bob Hartmann explains how his and many others’ formative experience in rural healthcare and community medicine with the Center for Health Services (CHS), Student Health Coalition (SHC), and Mountain People’s Health Councils (MPHC)—both as students and young professionals—left a lasting… Continued
Sally Kimberly’s take on patient education in rural healthcare
Sally Kimberly discusses clinical challenges during her time as a nurse practitioner with Mountain People’s Health Councils (MPHC) in Norma, Tenn., focusing specifically on the indispensable role of patient education in effective rural healthcare. Full footage of Sally Kimberly’s interview with Rick Davidson. Continued
Ruth Ann Casper and Scheryl Stout on the Maternal-Infant Health Outreach Worker Project (MIHOW)
Ruth Ann Casper, a participant in the Maternal-Infant Health Outreach Worker Project (MIHOW), shares about the powerful impact of home visitors and their value as sources of emotional support and information during her first pregnancy. Scheryl Stout, a home visitor… Continued
Frances Henderson on the Center for Health Services’ approach to community development
Frances Henderson from the Service Training for Environmental Progress (STEP) discusses the relationship between environmental pollution and public health, sharing specifically about a nearby contaminated creek in Hendersonville, Tenn. which caused significant medical concerns among community members. She also shares… Continued
Tom John on the Student Health Coalition and community self-determination
Tom John, M.D. comments on his work with the Student Health Coalition (SHC) in 1971. He shares that one of the most powerful takeaways from this learning experience was an introduction to and participation in the development of community health… Continued
“What it took” – Nine nurses reconvene fifty years later and discover the power of common denominators
Nine nurses gathered in Nashville in May 2019 to reminisce about their beginnings as nurses. Nursing practice underwent radical changes in those days. These nine nurses stood apart from their peers and in conflict with convention. Here, they discuss what… Continued
Nurse Practitioners, in the beginning…
Community leaders recognized early on the added value nurses with expanded roles brought to the table. In this video clip, community leaders Marie Cirillo and Betty Anderson recollect their efforts to lobby for legal changes that would continue to support… Continued
The Smithville Story
Learn more about Rod Lorenz on his profile page. More on Tennessee: More on Nursing: Continued
Dal Macon on SHC fundamentals
Learn more about Dal Macon on his profile page. More on Community Engagement: Continued
The Origin Story: In the words of Bill Dow
Several years before he died, Bill Dow agreed to participate in recorded conversations about his farming philosophies, with the idea that he would use the recordings to compose a book about sustainable agriculture. He died in 2012, before the project… Continued
Tom John in brevis
Dr. Tom John speaks about his experiences with the Student Health Coalition (SHC) and the Center for Health Services (CHS). Recorded by Margaret Ecker, 2013. Continued
A conversation with Martha Stucker
Martha Stucker shares about her time working in the mountains from 1968-1972, and explains her role as a nurse practitioner focused on meeting community needs. Continued
Charles Scott reminisces about the Student Health Coalition
An interview with Charles Scott, professor of philosophy at Vanderbilt University and early supporter of and participant in the Student Health Coalition (SHC). Continued