About us
Who we are
A transformed health landscape where communities and institutions work hand in hand, creating equitable pathways to wellness, knowledge, and resilience in every neighborhood.
Innovation Commons at Community is a groundbreaking, multi-use public health hub located in the heart of Chicago. Born from the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic, Innovation Commons exists at the intersection of scholarship, service, and healing. This space is not just a clinic, a classroom, or a research lab—it is all three and more.
Rooted in syndemic theory and designed for justice, Innovation Commons unites a diverse network of students, researchers, clinicians, and residents who believe that healthcare must be human-centered and place-based. Here, academia doesn’t serve communities from afar—it becomes a part of them.
Our space houses STI clinical care, public health research, youth and adult education, art-based healing, and mobile outreach programming. Innovation Commons is a response to the fractured systems exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and a blueprint for what public health should be: adaptable, community-embedded, and equity-driven.
Founder Spotlight
— Dr. Molly Kachale Netter
Innovation Commons is the vision of Dr. Molly Kachale Netter, a pioneer in community-engaged public health and Assistant Professor at DePaul University’s College of Health Sciences. Dr. Netter brings a bold academic lens and lived commitment to the idea that true innovation is collaborative, not top-down.
Inspired by the chaos and clarity of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Netter recognized the urgent need to create nontraditional health spaces that move beyond the clinic. She leads with humility, rigor, and radical imagination—blurring the lines between university, neighborhood, and healing space. Her leadership infuses Innovation Commons with purpose, integrity, and deep community trust.
The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare the racial, economic, and structural disparities embedded in our healthcare systems. But it also taught us how to adapt. How to meet people where they are. How to turn laundromats into pop-up clinics and riverside parks into healing spaces.
Innovation Commons is a direct response to these revelations. It was founded to reimagine what health systems can look like when academic institutions don’t simply study communities—they partner with them. We are rebuilding trust, breaking silos, and creating a new infrastructure of care grounded in presence, proximity, and justice.
Our approach
Our Mission
To bridge academic innovation with grassroots healing by creating accessible, responsive, and inclusive spaces that promote sexual health, community-driven research, and collaborative education—centered around the people most impacted by structural inequities.
Our mission is to connect academic innovation with the wisdom and resilience found in communities. We create inclusive and responsive spaces where sexual health, community-driven research, and collaborative education come together to serve those most affected by systemic inequities. Through this approach, we aim to transform healthcare from the ground up—making it more accessible, just, and rooted in human connection.
Our Vision
A transformed health landscape where communities and institutions work hand in hand, creating equitable pathways to wellness, knowledge, and resilience in every neighborhood.
Our vision is to reshape the future of healthcare by bridging the gap between institutions and the communities they serve. We believe that lasting wellness is achieved when people have not only access to care but also a voice in how that care is designed and delivered. By fostering collaboration, equity, and shared learning, we aim to build resilient communities where health and knowledge thrive together.
Partnerships and Community Engagement
We believe collaboration is the engine of change. At Innovation Commons, we work hand in hand with neighborhood health workers, street teams, and Community Advisory Boards who guide and ground our efforts.