Fiscal Year 2025 Annual Report
Partnerships That Move Health Forward
The Wisconsin Partnership Program (WPP) is a grantmaking program within the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (SMPH) committed to improving health for all in Wisconsin through investments in community partnerships, education and research.
The Wisconsin Partnership Program advances its mission to improve health and advance health equity through a strong portfolio of grant programs that propel medical research, enhance health education and workforce development and support community partnerships. The work of WPP and its grantees touches all corners of the state, across a wide range of health challenges, communities, populations and geographic areas.
Since 2004, the Wisconsin Partnership Program has awarded 692 grants totaling $322 million. These awards have resulted in a remarkable return on investment, with grantees leveraging more than $963 million in additional funding from other sources to sustain the projects.
Fiscal year 2025 annual report (PDF)
The Wisconsin Partnership Program also published a 2025 WPP grant activity supplement to the annual report which provides a complete listing of grants that were active, awarded or concluded in fiscal year 2025.
Message From Dean Nita Ahuja and Associate Dean Amy Kind
Dear Partners,
Thank you for your interest in the Fiscal Year 2025 annual report of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health’s (SMPH) Wisconsin Partnership Program (WPP). We are pleased to present WPP’s grantmaking activities of the past year, highlighting the remarkable work of grant recipients and the positive impact that together we are making to improve the health of the people of Wisconsin.
Guided by the timeless principles of the Wisconsin Idea, WPP’s investments in community partnerships, education and research continue to benefit the people of our state regardless of where they live. This work positively impacts the health of patients and populations across rural, urban and tribal communities.
For example, collaborative research teams use WPP funding to harness the power of interdisciplinary research to tackle complex health challenges. Their findings inform treatment and care for a wide range of diseases.
WPP also supports the development of our talented and promising early-career SMPH faculty. Grants to new investigators and postdoctoral trainees enable the pursuit of innovative research and the generation of preliminary data that lay the groundwork for future research and extramural funding.
WPP continues its strong legacy of creating vital pathways to medical and public health education. These investments are preparing future physicians, strengthening public health leadership capacity and addressing critical health workforce needs.
When our communities are healthier, Wisconsin is healthier. As such, Wisconsin Partnership Program community grant funding reaches broadly across our state’s varied geographic regions and communities. Community grant recipients are leading numerous and varied projects focusing on health issues such as nutrition and food security, housing stability, maternal and child health, health care access and more. Their work is improving health outcomes and helping communities thrive.
In alignment with the Universities of Wisconsin, WPP and the UW School of Medicine and Public Health continue to navigate the evolving landscape as we pursue our vision that everyone in Wisconsin will live healthy and full lives. We are proud to work with you to strengthen our communities, propel research and discovery, and provide innovative medical and public health education.
Thank you for your partnership and for sharing in our bold vision of a healthy Wisconsin for all.
Nita Ahuja, MD, MBA
Robert Turell Distinguished Chair in Medical Leadership
Dean, School of Medicine and Public Health
Vice Chancellor for Medical Affairs
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Amy J.H. Kind, MD, PhD
Executive Director, Wisconsin Partnership Program
Associate Dean for Social Health Sciences and Programs
University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
Fiscal Year 2025 at a Glance
Grants awarded
Dollars awarded
Total active grants
*Data from July 1, 2024–June 30, 2025
View the annual report PDF for a complete list of awards.
Selected Grant Highlights
The work of the Wisconsin Partnership Program and its grantees touches all corners of the state, across a wide range of health challenges, communities, populations and geographic areas. Selected from a wide range of outstanding projects, these examples demonstrate how Wisconsin Partnership Program grant recipients are leading work to transform health through impactful community partnerships and innovative education, workforce development and research initiatives.
Building Capacity and Connection
Convening Events
In fiscal year 2025, WPP offered several opportunities for connection and capacity-building across the state.
In October 2025, WPP hosted its 20th anniversary celebration. A grantee showcase highlighted the work and progress of several grant recipients and a reception honored WPP’s proud history and impact. Over 190 people, including current and former grant recipients and staff, university and community leaders and distinguished members of the public attended the events.
WPP’s Community Connections series continued this year with three in-person and one virtual event held in April 2025. These events provided opportunities for both future and current grantees to learn, network and familiarize themselves with WPP’s grant offerings.
Evaluation and Impact
The Wisconsin Partnership Program’s evaluation strategy has two primary focus areas:
- Understanding how WPP support facilitates the work of our grantees
- Providing evaluation support for grantees as needed
Evaluation is a key component of WPP’s work and draws on data from multiple sources. Several key data sources help us better understand the impact of WPP funding on the health and well-being of people across the state of Wisconsin while also enabling review and improvement of internal processes and procedures to best support applicants, grantees and others.
Evaluation Support
A strong evaluation program is critical for tracking the progress and outcomes of WPP-funded projects, and data collected helps demonstrate a project’s proof-of-concept for future funding and sustainability. WPP’s evaluators provide varying levels of evaluation support to all grantees based upon their specific needs for project evaluation. This evaluation is vital in helping grant recipients build their evaluation capacity to expand or sustain their projects. Grantees funded through WPP’s Community Impact Grant Level One Program receive intensive academic partner-level evaluation support. This includes consultations on survey tools, assistance with evaluation and report writing, training opportunities and research assistance. All other grantees are able to consult with WPP evaluation staff as needed.
Reporting Outcomes and Impact
The Wisconsin Partnership Program provides outcome reports for each concluded project after grantees submit their final reports. The outcome reports include significant achievements of each project as well as key outcomes and are published on the Funded Projects section of the WPP website.
Leveraged in funding derived from WPP-funded projects
Articles, presentations and other media sharing findings of WPP projects
Attendees at WPP-hosted learning and networking events
*Data from July 1, 2024–June 30, 2025