Journey Health Foundation awards $3.5 Million to UTC’s Gary W. Rollins College of Business to establish the Journey Health Foundation Research Center for Health and Economic Analytics
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga today announced a transformative $3.5 million gift and research grant from the Journey Health Foundation to establish a Research Center for Health and Economic Analytics within the Gary W. Rollins College of Business.
The new center, which will be named in honor of the foundation, marks a major step in the use of data-driven research to combat long-standing health care disparities in the region and will serve as a role model across the United States.
The Journey Health Foundation Research Center will focus on delivering health and economic analytics, an effect that aligns directly with the foundation’s mission to better understand and address social determinants of health that affect underserved communities in the Chattanooga area.
“Journey Health Foundation is committed to transforming Chattanooga from one of the least healthy and unequal cities in the country to one of the healthiest,” said Tracy Wood, CEO of Journey Health Foundation. “Strategic and data-backed interventions are the tools we will use to close gaps in health care and make that vision a reality. Deepening UTC’s research capabilities through this partnership allows all of us to use data in transformative new ways, and we are excited to get to work.”
The $3.5 million gift will be allocated as follows:
$2.25 million to establish and operate the Journey Health Foundation Research Center for Health and Economic Analytics, which will spearhead research aimed at solving critical health care challenges in the region.
$1.25 million to fund a master research grant that will support innovative research and data analytics projects led by the center.
A Board of Managers, appointed jointly by the Rollins College of Business and Journey Health Foundation, will oversee the management of these grants.
“UTC’s Rollins College of Business is dedicated to fostering future leaders and problem solvers through hands-on, data-driven learning experiences, which makes this the ideal home for this new research center,” said Dr. Robert Dooley, dean of the Gary W. Rollins College of Business.
“The center will provide opportunities for our students to work with outstanding faculty on meaningful, impactful research. We are honored at the trust that Tracy and the Journey Health Foundation board are placing with us and proud of the contributions we can make to improving health and quality of life across our city.”
“The center will enhance the teaching, research and service mission of the Department of Data Analytics in the Rollins College of Business,” said Dr. Hemant Jain, W. Max Finley Chair in Business, Free Enterprise and Capitalism at UTC and director of the Journey Health Foundation Research Center. “It will provide real-life examples for teaching various phases of analytics and will provide a valuable data source for faculty—not only in the College of Business—but for other areas like public health, social work, computer science and more. As a result, the greater Chattanooga area will have access to reliable, curated data to help address pressing economic and health challenges.”
This grant marks one of Journey Health Foundation’s first major philanthropic commitments since its formation last year. The Foundation was founded following the sale of Hospice of Chattanooga and its parent company, Alleo Health System. With over $100 million in assets, Journey Health Foundation is the largest health care-specific philanthropic organization in the region.
The Journey Health Foundation Research Center for Health and Economic Analytics will have a temporary office in Fletcher Hall until construction is complete on the college’s 81,000-square-foot expansion.
