Diversity is becoming more and more of a conscious thought in the minds of everyone in higher education, especially when it comes to the nation's rapidly growing Latino population. Latinos have made great strides in attaining college degrees in recent years, however, they still lag behind most ethnic and racial groups in obtaining higher education degrees. At the University of Michigan, a new plan looks to take steps to help Latinos and other minorities better navigate the college experience and earn degrees, the Associated Press reports. The university, located in Ann Arbor, Mich. (4.6% Latino population), has committed $85 million over the next five seasons to implementing programs that will help incoming minority freshmen adjust to the college life and develop skills that will ...
The college enrollment numbers for Latinos have steadily risen in recent years. However, Latino students still lag behind other racial and ethnic groups in obtaining two- and four-year degrees. In an effort to curb this trend, the National Community College Hispanic Council (NCCHC) has determined that addressing strategies at an institutional level are needed to help Latino students. “It is up to us to identify the challenges community college Latino students face but also to let them know there is hope,” said Maria Harper-Marinick, chancellor of the Maricopa Community College District and NCCHC president. 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 ...
America Walks and the Every Body Walk! Collaborative are excited to announce the second year of Micro Grant Funding. This program will award grantees up to $1,500.00 for projects related to increasing walking and walkability. walking and walkabilty can help to bridge community divides and overcome existing disparities. Read why, according to the Surgeon General's Call to Action to Promote Walkable Communities, it is important to promote walkability and increase walking and physical activity to improve community health. Applications for the micro grant are due November 18th by 5pm Eastern. Apply ...
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 ...
