How do you design a meeting to be focused, effective, and engaging? This workshop focuses on the key leadership skill of planning and structuring a meeting to achieve your desired outcomes. We will address the strategic skill of persuasive Communication and explore strategies for leading meetings that are inclusive, invite dialogue and engagement, and motivate participants to action. We’ll also provide actionable strategies and techniques to help keep your meetings on point and action-oriented.

Learn more and register here.

Take your evidence-based decision-making skills to the next level! Through this course, you’ll learn to develop a concise written statement of a public or community health problem, issue, or policy—and how to measure it. Explore various data sources, practice methods for prioritizing program and policy options, and learn about planning and logic models. Finally, you’ll learn how to conduct an economic evaluation and concepts of measurement validity and reliability.

The goal of this 10-week course is to help professionals in public health, mental health, public policy, and global health think critically about issues of health equity, and how you can utilize evidence-based decision-making as a tool to advance equity in your communities.

Learn more and apply here.

In facilitation, the most powerful moments don’t come from what the facilitator says but from what participants say to each other. The facilitator’s role is to support the group in achieving its goals by creating the conditions for meaningful conversation and shared problem-solving.

And yet, when conversations are complex or challenging, the facilitator holds unique responsibilities, including:

• Providing structure and creating a safe, intentional space that supports participant agency
• Navigating boundaries and accountability with confidence and care
• Many difficult facilitation moments trace back to one — or both — of these core responsibilities. When these responsibilities feel especially complex, facilitators benefit from continued practice, reflection, and support.

This Community of Practice (CoP) offers a supportive, peer-driven space to continue strengthening your confidence and facilitation practice after completing one of the following trainings:

• Facilitation Foundations
• Facilitation: From Brainstorming to Decision Making
• Designing Effective Meetings

Because each biweekly session builds on the last and relies on shared relationships, we ask that you register only if you can commit to attending all six sessions. Space is limited.

Learn more and apply here.

This 10-week course uses highly interactive activities to build your capacity to facilitate meetings and coalitions that are efficient, effective, and lead to results.

To be a more effective and efficient facilitator, we’ll help you first understand your own facilitation style. You will learn how to anticipate, prevent and intervene in difficult situations to keep the group from derailing and halting progress. Additionally, we will explore structured strategies you can use to generate ideas, evaluate and select ideas, and make a group decision. You’ll learn to help a group meet its goals and take ownership of the process.

Register here.

Strong teams are essential to advancing public health priorities, implementing strategic initiatives, and driving meaningful improvement. This interactive virtual workshop, offered over two 3-hour sessions, explores the characteristics, behaviors, and leadership practices that contribute to high-performing teams. Participants will gain practical tools to strengthen collaboration, improve communication, enhance team effectiveness, navigate challenging team dynamics, and foster a culture of accountability, trust, and continuous improvement. Through real-world discussion, reflection activities, and actionable strategies, attendees will leave with techniques they can immediately apply within their own teams, projects, and organizations.

Expert Instructor: 

• Amanda McCarty, MS, MBA, MHA

Dates:

• Session 1: Wednesday, October 7, 2026, from 1–4 p.m. ET
• Session 2: Wednesday, October 14, 2026, from 1–4 p.m. ET

Cost:

• $600 per participant (Includes two 3-hour live sessions)
• OR $1,000 for BOTH the Leadership, Communications, and Innovation Workshop AND High Performing Teams in Public Health Workshop

The Strategic Skills Collaborative is a virtual community for public health professionals, workforce developers, educators, and organizational leaders committed to strengthening strategic skills across public health governmental organizations. Members can exchange ideas, share practical resources, discuss real-world workforce development strategies, and connect with peers implementing the Strategic Skills framework. Join the community.

The Louisiana Public Health Institute and Health Resources in Action are launching a six-session ECHO series to help PHIG recipients navigate the practical use of artificial intelligence (AI) in public health. The series will explore how to evaluate, adopt, and sustain AI tools in government public health settings through real-world examples and discussion. Interested in presenting a case study from your agency or receiving registration updates? Complete the interest form.

The Public Health Foundation (PHF) has released the second edition of the National TRAIN Fact Sheet, featuring 2025 data and point-in-time metrics from January 2026. If you would like a customized snapshot for your state or are interested in exploring a TRAIN affiliate partnership for your agency, please contact Mike Barry at PHF.

This network is designed for participants exploring or implementing service and resource sharing within and across organizations, jurisdictions, and sectors. It offers facilitated peer exchange, structured learning, hands-on collaboration, and opportunities to explore service and resource sharing models while addressing real-world challenges. Learn more about the network and how to participate.

The PHIG Evaluation Advisory Group (EAG) is comprised of individuals and organizations that will actively use the evaluation findings and is open to PHIG recipients, health department staff, CDC staff, national public health organizations, community partners, and affiliated members. The EAG provides opportunities for participants to share input on how the national evaluation is designed and implemented, ensuring their perspectives and needs are considered at every stage.

To learn more or get involved, see the National Evaluation Team EAG Overview or email EAG@nnphi.org with any questions.

Are you looking for a space to connect with fellow public health practitioners around community engagement, systems-change work, and/or advancing optimal health for all? Then consider joining ASTHO’s virtual community Sustaining State and Community Engagement! In this virtual community participants can expect resources and connections centered around the following:

• Maintaining successfully established relationships between community and state agencies achieved through public health emergencies.
• Providing a space for sharing work and personal connections.
• Promoting work in the areas of systems change, community engagement, place-based initiatives, workforce development, data-driven mechanisms, and finance systems.

Once a member, participants can expect monthly “Community Corner” postings; along with highlighting a relevant case study and/or article, these posts will pose a discussion question to get participants thinking and talking. Participants are also strongly encouraged to start their own discussion posts or share any work they’d like with fellow community members.

We look forward to welcoming interested participants into the virtual community as a place for members to share, learn, and connect with one another. Thank you for all that you do in sustaining community engagement!

–ASTHO’s State and Community Engagement Team

The Health Equity Resource Library is a free, digital repository of evidence-based resources related to addressing COVID-19 health disparities and inequities. Additional health equity resources will continue to be added to support PHIG recipients in embedding equity into public health workforce and systems improvements.

Sign-up for a one-on-one consultation with the Public Health Training Center (PHTC) Network to discuss the Learning Agenda for Systems Change and get your questions answered.

The ASTHO Leadership Institute (ALI) offers professional development opportunities for state and territorial health officials at every stage of their tenure.

Our flagship program works with experts in executive leadership development, nationally recognized public health leaders, and ASTHO alumni to offer a customized learning program for governmental public health leaders. The program includes opportunities for self-assessment, development of knowledge and skills through intensive retreats, access to a learning management system with on-demand content, executive coaching, access to thought leaders and peer-to-peer learning, and networking opportunities. Learn more about ALI on astho.org.

Big Cities Health Coalition, in close collaboration with ASTHO, NACCHO, and the other PHIG TA partners, is pleased to launch a PHIG Local Workforce Directors Peer Network that is open to workforce directors in the 49 PHIG local jurisdictions. This peer network will offer support and facilitate success of direct federal investments made in local jurisdictions as they implement PHIG activities meant to strengthen the governmental public health workforce and overall infrastructure. Please email juliano@bigcitieshealth.org or lgilmore@bigcitieshealth.org for more information.

This monthly series for governmental public health professionals in workforce or HR roles offers a regular time to connect on focused topics (e.g., pathway programs). Topics featured may occur as part of a limited series or be a one-time subject that is particularly timely. Please email ASTHO’s workforce team to learn more about these pop-up professional development opportunities.

ASTHO’s Workforce/ Human Resources Peer Network comprises workforce and HR personnel representing state and territorial health agencies. The purpose of the network is to share successes, challenges, resources, and ideas and connect and problem-solve together. Topics of discussion in live meetings or through the online forum and resource library vary based on the needs of the network members and typically focus on recruitment, retention, workplace well-being, workforce planning, pathway programs, and training needs. Please email ASTHO’s workforce team to learn more.

To facilitate communication and resource-sharing among PHIG recipients, ASTHO is pleased to host a Principal Investigators Peer Network in collaboration with the Big Cities Health Coalition. Invitees from 107 funded jurisdictions will meet regularly to discuss PHIG successes, challenges, and opportunities with their peers. For more information, email the PHIG team.

PHIG evaluators, their support staff, and others working on evaluation are invited to join the Peer Network for PHIG Program Evaluators! This network is intended to create a platform for shared learning and meaningful connection among PHIG Program Evaluators. Members can benefit from knowledge exchange, peer review and feedback on their projects, and access to a library of evaluation resources and tools. The network will offer professional development opportunities as well as a support system for professionals in the field of program evaluation. To join, email Asha Bell.

This organizational and administrative assessment program is structured to assess health agencies against a set of evidence-informed indicators through a process facilitated by administrative leadership peers from across the county. Learn more by visiting the Peer Assessment webpage on astho.org.

PHAB encourages states to support local health departments in their quality and performance improvement efforts through PHAB accreditation and the Pathways Recognition programs. Both programs ensure the delivery of Foundational Capabilities, strengthen workforce development efforts, and increase accountability, transparency, and collaboration. Learn more >

Boundary Spanning Leadership includes three overarching strategies along with six boundary spanning practices. Together, these approaches combine to create what the Center for Creative Leadership calls the Nexus Effect—the limitless possibilities and results that groups can realize together, which far exceed what they can achieve on their own. Learn more about Boundary Spanning Leadership on astho.org.