Mississippi Center for Justice Presents CCF with Distinguished Partner Award

Executive Director Joan Alker (left) accepted the Distinguished Partner Award on behalf of CCF from Linda Dixon (right), Mississippi Center for Justice Health Law Director in June.
Executive Director Joan Alker (left) accepted the Distinguished Partner Award on behalf of CCF from Linda Dixon (right), Mississippi Center for Justice Health Law Director in June.

Georgetown University Center for Children and Families (CCF) received the Mississippi Center for Justice (MCJ) Distinguished Partner Award last month. During the award’s ceremony, MCJ Health Law Director Linda Dixon commended CCF for its collaborative style, expertise, and willingness to go the extra mile.

“The Mississippi Center for Justice is grateful for our longstanding partnership and our shared work to better the lives of children and families in Mississippi,” said Dixon. “Whenever we call on you, you are always there for us.”

Dixon specifically mentioned the joint CCF-MCJ policy brief documenting the harsh impact Mississippi’s proposal to impose Medicaid work requirements would have on low-income families with children, especially Black mothers. Ultimately, the federal government did not approve the proposal.

Accepting the award on CCF’s behalf, Executive Director Joan Alker said the opportunity to work with such dedicated experts improving the lives of Mississippi’s children and families has been gratifying.

“We are so grateful and flattered by this award but really the opportunity to work with Linda Dixon and all the folks at the Mississippi Justice Center has been a far greater reward than any award,” said Alker. “You inspire us with your dedication and collaborative work delving into how public policy impacts the lives of real people in Mississippi. Bad policy decisions made in Washington can have negative ramifications for generations to come so it is extremely gratifying to work alongside of you to analyze these policy proposals before they are put in place and inflict harm on low-income children and families.”

The award was a part of ‘Mississippi on the Potomac,’ a signature event held annually by the Mississippi Center for Justice to highlight MCJ’s groundbreaking work to dismantle systems of injustice. CCF was also invited to participate in the event’s inaugural Social Justice Empowerment Dinner to serve as a Social Justice Luminary to lead conversations about health advocacy in Mississippi, and highlighting the need for Medicaid expansion and investments in Black maternal health.

MCJ is part of the Finish Line Network, a nationwide initiative launched by the David & Lucile Packard Foundation and supported by W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Annie E. Casey Foundation, Wellspring Philanthropic Fund, and state and local funders. CCF anchors and provides technical assistance to the Finish Line Network of state-based policy and advocacy organizations that are leading efforts to make advances in child and family health coverage.

Margaux Johnson-Green is a State Health Policy Analyst with the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families.

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