Dr. Cynthia Tucker is Senior Vice President of Community Partnerships and Special Projects in Chicago.

By Dr. Cynthia Tucker

Almost 30 years ago, at a Planned Parenthood Chicago clinic, a young woman walked in who had been gang raped over the weekend. The woman was seen by the nurse practitioner, who asked me, a trained health educator at the time, to counsel the young woman.

It was a conversation and story that would change my life and career trajectory and spearhead the HIV workforce community partnerships and programs I would conduct over the last 30 years.

My discussions with the young woman that day and over the next few weeks to give her test results, counseling and support changed everything. It was then that I made the decision to work to increase access to HIV prevention, care and treatment for my community, especially among Black women. I wanted to ensure there were equitable services at Planned Parenthood and subsequently at all career positions.

At my next position, Chicago Women AIDS, I created the Imani Nia project, focusing on Chicago Public School youth. The project was highly innovative and cutting-edge, employing skits, spoken word and discussions to train youth on HIV/STI prevention.

Next, I created a project entitled the Unity Project, which focuses on young Black women working in STI centers. In 2008, work began at AIDS Foundation Chicago where I produced the South Side Women’s Collaborative, a program centering hairstylists to share HIV prevention information with Black women.

Several ground-breaking programs were then developed, including the newest project focusing on justice-involved Black Women, cis and trans, entitled the Women Evolving Project.

The story of that young woman and the women I have encountered since inspire me every day to create community programs, capacity building opportunities for the HIV workforce and to advocate and create equity for Black women in HIV. Read more at AFC Women Evolving HRSA.

““ I made the decision to work to increase access to HIV prevention, care and treatment for my community, especially among Black women. I wanted to ensure there were equitable services at all my career positions.”—Dr. Cynthia Tucker #PowerToChangeStories”

Dr. Cynthia Tucker is a Senior Vice President of Community Partnerships and Special Projects at a nonprofit in public health in Chicago. https://www.facebook.com/cynthia.tucker.902 ; https://www.linkedin.com/in/cynthia-tucker-dr-p-h-4b35519/