Featured Speaker:

Dr. Antonia Apolinario-Wilcoxon

Leader, Health Equity Policy and Diversity, Minnesota local and state government agencies.

Dr. Antonia Apolinario-Wilcoxon is a consistent and powerful voice for health equity and serves on the University of Minnesota School of Public Health public health administration & policy community advisory board. She advises both the full-time and executive programs on matters related to public health priorities, trends in practice and curriculum needs. Antonia also chairs the Center for Resilient Families - a federal grant to the University of Minnesota Institute for Translational Research in Children’s Mental Health.

Dr. Apolinario-Wilcoxon served as the Minnesota Department of Human Services’ (DHS) director of community relations from June 2012 to October 2018. In this role she managed, developed and facilitated engagement between DHS and the communities experiencing inequities in access to human services while building community relations. She staffed the creation of the legislatively mandated Cultural and Ethnic Communities Leadership Council (CECLC), which advises the Minnesota commissioner on reducing disparities that affect racial and ethnic groups within DHS programs.

Currently on leave from DHS on a mobility project at Ramsey County Public Health, Antonia leads community engagement activities with the City of St. Paul and the St. Paul Public Schools on youth and juvenile justice system issues. She helps bring alternative options to juvenile justice system placement. Antonia enjoys serving as a catalyst for change.