$3.6M Awarded to 18 Coalitions to Improve Community Health
Yesterday, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation awarded $3.6 million in Roadmaps to Health Community Grants up to $200,000 each to 18 coalitions across the United States to improve health in those communities. These groups aim to create healthier places to live, learn, work, and play.
In its second year, the Roadmaps to Health Community Grants now support a total of 30 state and local coalitions made up of leaders from government, business, education, health care, public health, and community organizations.
The 18 new grantees will be funded for two years as they work to create policy and system changes that address factors we know are connected to health. Eleven grantees will focus on improving educational opportunity and attainment, which research has shown can lead to better health.
Among the projects are:
- An initiative in Salt Lake City, Utah, that will create a comprehensive early learning system for children from birth to five years old, and advocate for statewide adoption of early education standards and school readiness programs.
- A project in Manchester, New Hampshire, to expand the focus of three public schools from educating students to hosting other organizations that will provide a range of social supports to children and families in those communities.
- Efforts in Colorado Springs, Colorado, that will establish a coordinated system of care for service members, veterans, and their families.
- A grantee in New York City that will strengthen a campaign to enact a city ordinance that mandates employers provide a minimum number of sick days to employees.
- Efforts in Oakland, California, to implement Linked Learning, a high-school level educational approach that links learning with career preparation.
