The Center for Asian Health Equity (CAHE) was established in 2015 as a response to the unmet health needs of diverse Asian American communities living in the Chicagoland region. CAHE was a unique academic and community partnership between the University of Chicago and the Asian Health Coalition (AHC), a community-based organization dedicated to improving health equity among Asian, immigrant, and underserved communities. CAHE adopted a multidisciplinary, collaborative approach to addressing gaps in clinical medicine and public health through comprehensive programs for research, health education, training, community engagement, policy, and information dissemination. As the first of its kind in the Midwest, housed within an academic institution, CAHE serves as a model for effective community-research partnerships that benefit underserved communities.

CAHE’s foundation was built on more than 20 years of community health and prevention work through AHC, bringing a national network of over 45 ethnic serving community-based organizations. In parallel, AHC leveraged institutional expertise to conduct multi-level research, evaluation, and clinical care to benefit target communities.