Additional Navigation
Helen R. Caulton-Harris
Honorary Doctorate of
Humane Letters Recipient
Helen Caulton-Harris is the Commissioner of the Division of Health and Human Services for the City of Springfield and the first Black woman to hold that title. Under her leadership, she is responsible for administrative oversight of four city departments: Veterans, Elder Affairs, the Thomas J. O’Connor Animal Control Shelter, and Libraries. As Commissioner, she is also responsible for the direct supervision of the Springfield Department of Health and Human Services and Health Services for the Homeless, a 330 Federally Funded Health Center.
Throughout her tenure, Ms. Caulton-Harris has played a prominent role in developing policy for the health and human services needs of underserved populations on the local and national level. As a testament to her public policy work, she has received numerous awards including the AIDS Action Award from the Action Committee, and the Rebecca Lee Award from the Harvard School of Public Health. She was named Woman of the Year by the Springfield Postal Service and received the Paul Revere Award from the Massachusetts Public Health Association. Among her many other accolades, she was named a member of the inaugural class of 100 Outstanding Women of Color from Western Massachusetts and Connecticut in 2015; received the prestigious Ubora Award from the African Hall Steering Committee of the Springfield Museum Association in 2016; saluted as a Woman of Impact by BusinessWest; and honored with the William Pynchon Medal for her achievements in typifying the ideals of citizenship in order to build a better community in Western Massachusetts.
Ms. Caulton-Harris was appointed to the board of Holyoke Community College (HCC) by former Governor Romney and reappointed by former Governor Deval Patrick and is the immediate past chair of HCC. She is also the immediate past chair of AAA of Pioneer Valley. Ms. Caulton Harris held these two chairmanships simultaneously. Ms. Caulton-Harris is the first Black Woman to chair both the boards of AAA and Holyoke Community College.
In addition, Ms. Caulton Harris represents the administration of Mayor Sarno on the board of the Museum Association and the Library Foundation. She is a past president of the Greater Springfield Chapter of the Links, Inc., a life member of the Carl L. Talbot VFW Ladies Auxiliary, and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated Xi Xi Omega Chapter.
Ms. Caulton-Harris has been appointed to the Public Health and Food Policy Councils for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. She has also been appointed by the Secretary of Minority Health in Washington D.C. as a member of the Region 1 Health Council and Governor Baker appointed her to the Gaming Commission Advisory Board.
Her exemplary efforts in response to the COVID-19 public health crisis, as well as her consistent communications and her collaboration across public health entities at the community, state, and national level, have earned her many accolades, including BusinessWest’s Lifetime Achievement award as part of their 2022 Healthcare Heroes.