Narrative Leadership - Using Storytelling to Mobilize Collective Action in Public Health

HPM 562 Subject & Catalog Number

Description

Public health is in the middle of a trust crisis. Evidence alone no longer moves people, institutions, or policy the way we were trained to expect. In a fractured information environment, the professionals who will shape the next era of our field are those who can do something that no dataset can do on its own: exercise the kind of leadership that helps communities understand what is at stake and act together.This course introduces Public Narrative, a practice of leadership that equips you to lead through story. Public Narrative offers a disciplined way to connect who you are, who your people are, and what this moment demands, turning shared values into the motivation to act.The goal of the course is to strengthen your capacity to lead. Effective public health leaders cannot engage only the head through evidence and data. They also learn to engage the heart through values and emotion, translating knowledge into the community, political, and economic power that long term change requires. Whether you are leading one person or thousands, this work asks you to locate the themes that matter, communicate them with clarity and courage, and live them out in your professional and public life. Narrative leadership is not a communications add on. In this moment, it is a core public health skill. This course is designed for students who want to practice it deliberately and carry it into whatever corner of the field they choose to serve.