Overview

Inspired by their father’s commitment to helping young people, Amy Squires and Sarah Squires-Doyle graciously support the Ben Squires Equity Internship. The Internship supports one intern per cohort for an entire year, for a total of three interns.

Ben Squires followed many different career paths before finding his true calling in public health. He worked for more than 20 years on various health care initiatives in the City of Chicago and with the Illinois Department of Public Health. He was passionate about challenging health inequities and helping to pave the way to improve access to quality health care for all people in Illinois. He especially enjoyed leading efforts to improve maternal and child health programs and to reduce infant mortality in Chicago.

As a board member at Health & Medicine Policy Research Group for 25 years, Ben made significant and lasting contributions to public health in Illinois. In 2021, Ben posthumously received the Quentin D. Young Board of Directors Award of Excellence for his tireless commitment to public health and his mentorship of young people starting out in their careers.

Ben passed away at the age of 95 in 2021, and his devotion to public health equity continues to live on. “We are deeply honored to continue our father’s legacy by funding equitable internships with Health & Medicine, an organization we love, respect, and trust. Our father had a real passion for mentoring young people starting out in their careers,” says Amy Squires and Sarah Squires-Doyle. “From mentoring his two daughters, to the kids in the neighborhood and budding young professionals, he was always eager to get people connected.”

Ben Squires Equity Interns
Fall 2021: Rachel Donaldson
Spring 2022: Stephanie Robinson
Summer 2022: Mehwish Ali
Fall 2022: Mayra Miranda
Summer 2023: Yasmeen Santana

Why Equity Internships
In 2018, Health & Medicine created an Internship Equity Committee charged with developing a new model for internships in which unpaid intern labor is replaced with a paid internship model, and for which we established a “one door” application process so that opportunities are not limited to the well-connected. Providing paid internships is an important step toward creating and sustaining a diverse, equitable, accessible, and inclusive workforce. Learn more about our Equity Intern Program here.