Our mission is to eliminate health disparities through recruiting, training, and sustaining and supporting health professionals from diverse backgrounds, community engagement, and advocacy.

The Health Education Center was established in 1996 as the Eastern Connecticut Area Health Education Center (AHEC). The federal AHEC Program was established in 1973 as a way to encourage medical schools to increase the number of students and residents trained in rural communities. The Connecticut AHEC Program was established in 1995 by the Connecticut General Assembly and received initial federal funding in 1997. The program is based at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine in Farmington and implemented by regional AHECs with offices in Waterbury, Hartford, Bridgeport, and Norwich.

Continuing to honor the history of AHEC, the Health Education Center has since expanded to lay out a bold new pathway forward that addresses the changing needs of the community.  This expansion builds upon the foundational vision of the organization to improve workforce development, with a commitment to keep racial equity and social justice at the center of the efforts.  HEC's programs and trainings provide health education to community members, healthcare focused career-building opportunities, and training to health professionals and health professions students on the health disparities affecting Eastern CT to ensure more equitable care for the community. 

HEC envisions a Connecticut where:

• All residents have the opportunity to thrive
• Pathways are open to all who seek to pursue a career in health care
• The health care system and its workforce represent and reflect the people they serve
• Communities are healthy, inclusive, supportive, engaged, and connected
• Health care services are available and accessible for all who need them when they are needed
• All residents, particularly children, are valued and supported in envisioning their future.

Stephen Smith, MD, MPH
Board Chairman
Physician, Community Health Center, Inc.
Professor Emeritus of Family Medicine,
Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University

Laurie Herring
Board Vice-Chairwoman
Chief Operations and Quality Officer
The Arc Eastern Connecticut

Stephanye Clarke
Board Secretary
Program Officer
Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut

Glorimar Anderson, LCSW
Behavioral Health Clinician
Community Health Center, Inc.

Setu Vora, MD
Chief Medical Officer
Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation

Joseph Zuzel
Manager Community Health for
Eastern Region of Hartford Healthcare

Debbie Phillips
Retired
Community Activist and Volunteer

William Cheng
Real Estate Broker
Brokerage by EXP Realty