When it comes to good health, every step counts-literally. New Jersey Healthy Communities Network in 2016 awarded $860,000 to the Sussex County YMCA and 43 other organizations to support environmental and policy change initiatives promoting healthy eating and active living, according to one source. As part of this grant, in Franklin, New Jersey (7.5% Latino), the Sussex County YMCA, Franklin Mayor Nicholas Giordano, and Walmart in Franklin partnered for the Healthy Parking Spots Initiative. They installed eight highly visible signs in the Walmart parking lot to tell shoppers how many steps to the store entrance. The Sussex County YMCA plans to expand the Healthy Parking Spots program to other retailers in the future. The purpose of Health Parking Spots program is to ...
City parks worker Michael Baldwin saw rampant physical inactivity and disease in San Antonio, Texas (68% Latino). To help, he wanted to attract people to existing health programs and services in city parks. Baldwin and his team, through local collaborations, developed Fit Pass, a city-wide scavenger hunt for wellness and physical activities. People can download a phone app or a bilingual Fit Pass passport that can be stamped for attending some of 2,300 activities across San Antonio parks, incentivizing Latino families to get physically active and play in parks. Physical Inactivity in San Antonio
Michael Baldwin, special projects manager with the City of San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department (Parks Department) in San Antonio, Texas, has helped develop and implement ...
By Patti Suppe, P.E. Teacher, Loma Vista Middle School, Riverside, Calif.
SaludToday Guest Blogger At Loma Vista Middle School, we have a vision that all students will realize their unlimited potential. Our goal is for them to excel in all areas of their middle school education, from academics to physical fitness and co-curricular activities. As a physical education teacher, I know first-hand the importance of health and wellness in achieving this goal. That’s why we enrolled in the Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program, funded in part by Kaiser Permanente in select U.S. cities, including Riverside. The Program has had a huge impact on our school achieving our wellness goals. This year, we were named one of America’s Healthiest Schools – and were ...
Data-driven policy is winning in Santa Monica, Calif. (13.1 %Latino). Santa Monica is committed to improving resident's health by looking at housing, transportation, parks, and youths, thus was one of seven communities to receive the 2016 RWJF Culture of Health Prize. In 2012, Santa Monica developed a Wellbeing Index to measure what was hampering or helping the well-being of residents. “The options we give people really affect their ability to access things that can improve the quality of their lives," Francie Stefan, Santa Monica mobility manager, said to the RWJF. Housing. Santa Monica started improving resident's ability to access to affordable housing decades ago. Santa Monica requires developers to set aside a percentage of newly constructed units for affordable ...
In the rural Columbia Gorge region of Oregon and Washington, collaboration has truly been the key to elevating the culture of health of everyone in the area. This vast area is larger than the state of Connecticut, however only 75,000 people live in this extreme environment. While many high-tech companies have moved into new the riverfront properties in Washington (11.74% Latino population) and Oregon (12.15% Latino population), many in remote areas live in poverty and the nearest medical care is over an hour’s drive away. Orchards in the region produce bounties of pears, apples, and cherries and yet 1 in 5 people are food insecure on a regular basis. To bridge these disparities, the people of the Columbia Gorge region have turned an “ordinary requirement” into an extraordinary ...
Healthy marketing can help people purchase more produce, shows a recent study, but it also can help people who speak different languages see the healthier choices in stores. Two years ago, working in various neighborhoods in California, including Simi Valley, Moorpark, Thousand Oaks and Newbury Park, Latino teens also saw the difference healthier marketing can do to protect the hearts of their family members. Six Spanish-speaking high school teens came up with a simple way to help mark healthier foods, despite lingual obstacles, and show other Spanish-Speaking shoppers which foods were best for their health, all by following dots. Dots? Yes, students placed colored dots to help shoppers understand health benefits of certain foods while shopping. Red dots on food showed ...
The city of Austin, Texas (34.83% Latino population) recently introduced the candidates for the newly created position of Equity Officer for the city at a town hall event. The newly created position will head an office of two to three staff members focused on identifying disparities in current city programs and services. The office will also work with community groups to ensure equal access to these programs and services. In order to reduce health disparities, it is critical to address inequities in programs, practices, and policies. Join our site, connect with others, and get involved. Residents of Austin petitioned the city to create the position due to the growing number of minorities leaving the city. The increased cost of living has been a key concern for minorities ...
A new pilot program is allowing a food bank to be a part of the Western New York Maritime Charter School (17% Latino), hoping to provide the over 80% of the students that rely on free school breakfast and lunches, a way to keep full even after school and focus on their studies. The $20,000 grant awarded from Dunkin' Donuts-Baskin Robbins Community Foundation, supports the new program, giving the Food Bank a way to provide for students and their families in a convenient way when families are short on time and funds. Many of the food options are packaged but offer nutritious proteins like cashew milk, canned tuna, and peanut butter. The Food Bank hopes to continue the pantry program to other schools and help provide food to families and students to ensure students are able to ...
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded more than $100 million to over 1,300 health centers across the United States to invest in health center quality improvement. The centers will use these funds to “expand current quality improvement systems and infrastructure.” The centers will use the funds to improve systems and infrastructure as well improve some of the primary care services they deliver in their communities. “Millions of Americans rely on health centers to provide them with quality health care,” said Dr. Mary Wakefield, HHS Acting Deputy Secretary. “These quality improvement awards will support health centers to continue to deliver superior health care that engages patients, improves care coordination and bridges overall access to ...
