REACH 2018 Recipients

Alabama

Recipient: Montgomery Area Community Wellness Coalition

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Lowndes, Macon, Montgomery counties

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Ghandi Daniels
Montgomery Area Community Wellness Coalition
3060 Mobile Highway
Montgomery, AL 36108
Tel: 334-293-6502
Email: gdaniels@thewellnesscoalition.org

Project Overview: The Montgomery Area Community Wellness Coalition strategies include activities such as: 1) increasing referrals to the Alabama Department of Public Health Tobacco Quitline; 2) developing a Fresh Truck to travel to neighborhoods in food deserts; 3) increasing workplaces and churches that support onsite breastfeeding; and 4) increasing community-clinical linkages to the existing health resources and programs through wellness navigators. The coalition is training existing staff in community agencies to provide community health worker services and engage local pharmacists to make referrals to the Chronic Disease and Diabetes Self-Management Programs and the Diabetes Prevention Program.

Alaska

Recipient: Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Tribal Health Organizations to be selected

Priority Population: Alaska Natives

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Ellen Provost
Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium
4000 Ambassador Drive
Anchorage, AK 99508-5909
Tele: 907-729-2923
Email: EMProvost@anthc.org

Project Overview: The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and its partners support regional tribal health organizations. Together they assess nutrition standards in their regions, improve food procurement, train community health workers in breastfeeding support, promote existing chronic disease prevention programs, and expand existing tobacco control interventions.

Arizona

Recipient: Pima County Health Department

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: Pima County, AZ

Priority Populations: American Indians; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Francisco Garcia
Pima County
3950 S Country Club Road
Suite 100
Tucson, AZ 85714
Tel: 520-724-7733
Email: Francisco.Garcia@pima.gov

Project Overview: Pima County is working with Mexican-Americans and American Indians to: 1) increase tobacco-free living; 2) increase access to affordable and healthier foods; 3) promote physical activity through culturally and socioeconomically-tailored multimedia campaigns, education and training, policy development, and participation incentives; and 4) increase access to existing health programs and services.

Arkansas

Recipient: University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Sector: state university

Geographic Locations of Work: Benton, Carroll, Madison and Washington counties, AR

Priority Populations: Hispanic Americans; Marshallese (Pacific Islanders)

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Pearl McElfish
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
4301 West Markham
Little Rock, AR 72205
Tel: 479-713-8000
Email: PamcElfish@uams.edu

Project Overview: The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences will use a community-based participatory approach and engage members of the Hispanic and Marshallese communities to improve access to healthy foods, breastfeeding support, add or improve walking and bicycle-friendly trails and routes to transit systems and everyday destinations, and link the community to culturally-tailored health and preventive care services.

California

Recipient: California Department of Public Health

Sector: state health department

Geographic Locations of Work: San Joaquin Valley, California, specifically Madera and Merced counties

Priority Population: Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Caroline Kurtz
California Department of Public Health
1616 Capitol Avenue, MS-7204
Sacramento, CA 95814
Tel: 916-552-9908
Email: caroline.kurtz@cdph.ca.gov

Project Overview: The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) leads the California Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (CalREACH) in partnership with two San Joaquin Valley coalitions and Local Health Departments in Madera and Merced counties. CalREACH supports evidence-based policy, systems, and environmental change strategies in Hispanic American communities in the San Joaquin Valley to improve nutrition, physical activity, breastfeeding continuity of care and community supports, and community-clinical linkages.

Recipient: County of San Diego, Health and Human Services Agency

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: Mid-City and Southeastern sub-regional area of the Central Region of San Diego County, CA

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., Health Officer & Director
County of San Diego, Health and Human Services Agency
3851 Rosecrans Street
San Diego, CA 92110
Tel: 619-542-4181
Email: wilma.wooten@sdcounty.ca.gov

Project Overview: San Diego’s REACH project is supporting interventions in nutrition, physical activity, and clinical-community linkages interventions tailored for African Americans and Hispanic Americans. The nutrition strategy includes implementation of the Live Well Community Market Program and the Good Food District, improvement of YMCA afterschool program nutrition standards, increased participation in EBT and WIC programs among retailers, and increased support for lactation-friendly policies and programs; the physical activity strategy includes the implementation of San Diego’s Vision Zero strategies, to improve active transportation and safety; and the clinical-community linkages strategy promotes the utilization of local chronic disease management programs and expands the role of Community Health Workers to facilitate referrals through 2-1-1 San Diego, with an emphasis on tobacco cessation and prevention strategies.

Recipient: Public Health Advocates

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Location of Work: Stockton, CA

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Christina Peoples
Public Health Advocates
P.O. Box 2039
Davis, CA 95617
Tel: 209-762-1606
Email: cp@phadvocates.org

Project Overview: PHI is improving Stockton for African American communities by: establishing health ministries in faith communities to implement nutrition, physical activity, and breastfeeding guidelines in their communities engaging residents in the implementation of health policies in Stockton’s General Plan Update and for using CA Prop 68 Park Bond funding in park poor neighborhoods; and training resource liaisons to link residents to evidence-based tools and resources and create resource hubs to build resilience.

Connecticut

Recipient: City of Hartford

Sector: city government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: North Hartford, CT (Northeast, Upper Albany, and Clay Arsenal neighborhoods)

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Liany Arroyo
Department of Health & Human Services
131 Coventry Street
Hartford, CT 06112
Tel: 860-757-4744
Email: liany.arroyo@hartford.gov

Project Overview: The City of Hartford’s Department of Health and Human Services is implementing the Hartford Healthy Family Initiative (HHFI). Strategies include: 1) implementing continuity of care/community support for breastfeeding; 2) working with food vendors, distributors, and producers to enhance healthier food procurement; 3) supporting implementation of tobacco-free policies within workplaces and multi-unit housing; 4) establishing new or improved pedestrian, bicycle, or transit transportation systems that are combined with new or improved land use or environmental design; and 5) expanding the use of community health workers, patient navigators, and pharmacists to increase referrals of individuals in the priority populations to accessible health and preventive care programs.

Recipient Name: Southern Connecticut State University

Sector: state university

Geographic Location of Work: New Haven, CT

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Alycia Santilli
Southern Connecticut State University
501 Crescent Street
New Haven, CT 06515
Tel: 203-392-9950
Email: santillia1@southernct.edu

Project Overview: The Community Alliance for Research and Engagement (CARE) at Southern Connecticut State University is advancing health equity with and for Black and Hispanic residents of New Haven by improving access to chronic disease prevention and management programs, healthy food, and physical activity.

District of Columbia

Recipient Name: Leadership Council for Healthy Communities, Inc.

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Washington, DC

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Sullivan Robinson
710-12 Randolph Street, NW
Washington, DC 20011-5911
Tele: 202-541-1031
Email: sullivanrobinson@msn.com

Project Overview: The Leadership Council for Healthy Communities, Inc. is focusing on improving access to healthy food and increasing tobacco-free spaces where African American persons live and work. Community health workers and health navigators will help expand bidirectional referral linkages to ward-based clinical and health-related service partners.

Florida

Recipient: City of Miami Gardens

Sector: city government

Geographic Location of Work: Miami Gardens, FL: zip codes 33054 and 33056

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Thamara Labrousse
City of Miami Gardens
18605 NW 27th Avenue
Miami Gardens, FL 33056
Tel: 305-914-9072
Email: Tlabrousse@miamigardens-fl.gov

Project Overview: The Live Healthy Miami Gardens project work includes: 1) creating and implementing a Healthy Food Plan and a Breastfeeding TouchPoint Program; 2) establishing five new public transportation routes; 3) completing and implementing an Active Transportation Wayfinding Plan citywide and a Complete Streets Plan streetscape design of a 5-square mile Entertainment District; and 4) implementing communications and coordinated care strategies to increase community-clinical linkages, including deployment of the CDC Diabetes Prevention Program.

Georgia

Recipient: DeKalb County Board of Health

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: DeKalb County, GA

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Sedessie Spivey
DeKalb County Board of Health
445 Winn Way
Decatur, GA 30030
Tel: 404-294-3740
Email: Sedessie.Spivey@dph.ga.gov

Project Overview: The LEAD DeKalb initiative of the DeKalb County Board of Health is improving the health of African Americans by: increasing access to healthier foods at community venues through mobile markets and improved voucher incentive programs; establishing lactation support services; establishing new or improved pedestrian and bicycle transportation systems; connecting the priority population to appropriate and locally available health programs; expanding the use of health professionals to increase referrals.

Recipient: Houston County Board of Health/North Central Health District

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: Hancock County, GA

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Karen Ebey-Tessendorf
Houston County Board of Health
201 Second Street, Suite 1100
Macon, GA 31201
Email: karen.ebey-tessendorf@dph.ga.gov

Project Overview: The Hancock Health Improvement Partnership (HHIP) will implement strategies and activities to reduce health disparities among Hancock County’s African American population. HHIP is working on improving food service guidelines in worksites, faith-based organizations, and in food banks; making more produce available in small retail outlets; increasing accessibility to safe places for physical activity; and developing community-clinical linkages to available programs such as the National Diabetes Prevention Lifestyle Change program.

Recipient: Young Men’s Christian Association of Coastal Georgia, Inc.

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Location of Work: Chatham County, GA

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Joel Smoker
Healthy Savannah
1602 Drayton Street
Savannah, GA 31401
Tel: 912-354-5480
Email: joel@ymcaofcoastalga.org

Project Overview: The Savannah/Chatham County REACH Project is working with public institutions and community organizations to expand existing preventive health programs in the target area; link residents to community safety net services; and connect programs for better coordination. They are also working to bring healthier food by improving offerings in corner stores, food banks, and increasing Food Truck 912 stops; improving transit to where people need to go, and engaging residents of priority neighborhoods in the City of Savannah’s proposed zoning ordinance and neighborhood master planning processes.

Hawaii

Recipient: University of Hawaii

Sector: state university

Geographic Locations of Work: US Affiliated Pacific Islands (USAPI)

Priority Population: Pacific Islanders

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Dr. Neal Palafox
677 Ala Moana Boulevard, Suite 815
Honolulu, HI 96813
Tele: 808-692-0855
Email: npalafox@hawaii.edu

Project Overview: The University of Hawaii is working on a three-prong approach: developing smoke-free worksites and smoke-free multi-unit housing; promoting healthy nutrition standards in community and government spaces, restaurants, hospitals, and schools; and increasing access to safe physical activity.

Indiana

Recipient: Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: Marion County, IN

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Sandra Cummings
Marion County Public Health Department
3838 N. Rural Street
Indianapolis, IN 46205
Tel: 317-221-2096
Email: scummings@marionhealth.org

Project Overview: Marion County is engaging African American residents and neighborhood stakeholders in developing action plans to enhance pedestrian infrastructure and support walking safely in high-risk neighborhoods. Healthy food standards will be implemented in a large urban hospital and through food pantries using best practices. This project encourages Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program enrollees to purchase produce through Produce RX and double voucher benefits program, both of which will be expanded into retail settings. Breastfeeding policy and practice support is being addressed in community, faith-based, and worksite settings. Marion County is facilitating linkages for African Americans to diabetes prevention and management programs, cooking classes, and other existing resources.

Maine

Recipient: Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Wabanaki Communities in the counties of Aroostook, Penobscot, and Washington

Priority Population: American Indian

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Andrea Sockebasin
Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness
157 Park Street, Suite 5
Bangor, ME 04401
Tele: 207-712-4337
Email: asockabasin@wabanakiphw.org

Project Overview:
The five Wabanaki communities (Aroostook Band of Micmac, Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, Passamaquoddy – Pleasant Point, Passamaquoddy – Indian Township, and Penobscot Nation) will work with Wabanaki Public Health to improve health, prevent chronic disease, and reduce health disparities related to health risk behaviors among American Indians in Maine, with a primary focus on Native youth. This will be achieved by expanding the existing intertribal youth program, working to improve community access to fresh fruits and vegetables, creating partnerships to improve policies for access for breastfeeding friendly areas, and focus on recruitment, retention, community outreach, and education to improve community-clinical linkages.

Massachusetts

Recipient: City of Worcester, Massachusetts

Sector: city government

Geographic Location of Work: Worcester, MA

Priority Population: Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Cassandra Anderson
Worcester Division of Public Health/Central MA Regional Public Health Alliance
Worcester, MA 01610
Email: AndersenC@worcesterma.gov

Project Overview: The Coalition for a Healthy Greater Worcester is working with the Latin American Health Alliance and the Worcester Division of Public Health to increase access to nutrition, physical activity, tobacco-free environments, and community-clinical linkages, as well as quality improvement for Hispanic Americans.

Recipient: Lowell Community Health Center

Sector: federally qualified health center

Geographic Locations of Work: Lowell, MA

Priority Population: Southeast Asians and Hispanics

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Sheila Och
161 Jackson Street
Lowell, MA 01852-2103
(978) 937-9700 | sheilaoc@lchealth.org

Project Overview: Lowell Community Health Center will implement nutrition and physical activity strategies designed to improve access, use, and navigation of tailored, community-level interventions such as bike lanes and improving access to food pantries. They will also educate service providers on ways to better understand and address the social determinants of health and reduce health disparities.

Recipient: Partners In Health

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Navajo Nation (including areas in Arizona, Utah, New Mexico)

Priority Populations: American Indians/Alaskan Natives

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Sonya Shin
COPE
210 E. Aztec Avenue
Gallup, NM 87301
Tel: 617-872-0310
Email: sonya@copeproject.org

Project Overview: Partners in Health is working with Navajo communities to increase the consumption of healthier foods by: increasing the availability of healthier foods sold in small stores and served at community venues; strengthening regional food systems by expanding the Navajo Fruit and Vegetable Prescription Program; and supporting new Farm to School initiatives. In addition, they are supporting community planning and execution of trail projects. Systems that enable providers to refer women to community-based resources including breastfeeding support and assign primary care providers are being created. Finally, Diné College is creating the first Tribal Community Health Worker (CHW) Certification Program to expand the CHW workforce in Navajo Nation.

Michigan

Recipient: Eastern Michigan University

Sector: university

Geographic Locations of Work: Wayne and Kent counties, MI

Priority Population: Asian-Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Tsu-Yin Wu
Eastern Michigan University
Nursing
328
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
Tel: 734-487-2297
Email: twu@emich.edu

Project Overview: Eastern Michigan University is working with the Asian Communities toward Innovative Visionary Environment (ACTIVE) Coalition and partners to: increase access to healthy foods; improve connectivity to healthy food and physical activity enhanced by geographic information system-based technology; and implement culturally tailored strategies to improve access to preventive health programs in order to reduce health disparities in this underserved population.

Recipient: Greater Flint Health Coalition, Inc.

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Genesee County, MI

Priority Population: African American and Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Nichole Smith-Anderson
Greater Flint Health Coalition, Inc.
519 South Saginaw Street, Suite 306
Flint, MI 48502
Tele: 810-232-2228
Email: nsmithanderson@flint.org

Project Overview:
The Greater Flint Health Coalition will collaborate with multi-sector partners, to improve health, prevent chronic disease, and reduce health disparities among African Americans and Hispanic Americans with the highest risk or burden of chronic disease related to health behaviors and health equity in Flint and Genesee County. The Coalition will increase access to healthier foods by expanding local resources, culturally competent breastfeeding support, and expanding an established Community Referral Platform utilizing community health workers and leveraging existing chronic disease prevention programs.

Recipient: National Kidney Foundation of Michigan, Inc.

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Location of Work: western Wayne County, MI

Priority Populations: African American; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Charlene Cole
National Kidney Foundation of Michigan
1169 Oak Valley Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
Tel: 734-222-9800
Email: ccole@nkfm.org

Project Overview: The National Kidney Foundation of Michigan is addressing food insecurity, active transportation planning, increasing breastfeeding support, accessibility to healthier foods, and safe places for physical activity, and culturally appropriate health and community programs through community-clinical linkages. The project focuses on African American and Hispanic Americans, especially those who have low socioeconomic status, are Medicaid or dual-eligible beneficiaries, and/or are living with disabilities in western Wayne County, MI.

Minnesota

Recipient: City of Minneapolis

Sector: city government

Geographic Locations of Work: Minneapolis, MN

Priority Population: African American / East African and American Indian

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Patty Bowler
City of Minneapolis
350 5th St. suite 300
Minneapolis, MN 55415
Tele: 612-673-3009
Email: patty.bowler@minneapolismn.gov

Project Overview:
The Minneapolis Health Department (MHD) will collaborate with community partners to reduce chronic disease risk factors in the African American/East African and American Indian communities by implementing nutrition and community-clinical linkage strategies. Combining a people-approach (supporting individuals through education and engagement) with a place-approach (creating environments that foster good health), MHD and partners will work with multi-unit housing properties and community-based cultural organizations to improve healthy food options and connect Native food producers to congregate meal settings, work with the Division of Indian Works and the Indigenous Breastfeeding Network to expand breastfeeding support, and with housing partners to increase the delivery of chronic disease prevention programs, and link residents to clinics and other services.

Mississippi

Recipient: Mississippi Public Health Institute

Sector: non-profit public health institute

Geographic Location of Work: Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson counties, MS

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Roy Hart
Mississippi Public Health Institute
829 Wilson Drive
Suite C
Ridgeland, MS 39157
Tel: 601-398-4406
Email: rhart@msphi.org

Project Overview: The Mississippi Public Health Institute project is focusing on the health and well-being of African American families, mothers, and babies by educating on the health effects of smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke, facilitating linkages to tobacco cessation support, and increasing the number of primary care providers who integrate tobacco cessation strategies into practice. The project is promoting breastfeeding through a focused communication campaign that influences health behaviors and the implementation of Baby Cafes, as well as increase the number of primary care providers who link mothers to lactation support services.

Nebraska

Recipient: Health Partners Initiative DBA Partnership for a Healthy Lincoln

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Location of Work: Lincoln/Lancaster County, NE

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Tami Frank
Partnership for Healthy Lincoln
4600 Valley Road, Suite 250
Lincoln, NE 68510
Tel: 402-430-9940
Email: tfrank@healthylincoln.org

Project Overview: Health Partners Initiative DBA Partnership for a Healthy Lincoln (PHL), El Centro de las Americas, Malone Community Center, and the Asian Community and Cultural Center are working to eliminate health disparities in Hispanic and African Americans in Lincoln. Activities include: 1) improving nutrition through ECEs, faith-based and community organizations; 2) increasing access to physical activity through Cultural Centers; and 3) strengthening community-clinical linkages to change health behaviors leading to chronic diseases causing premature death and disability which disproportionately affect this priority population.

Nevada

Recipient: Southern Nevada Health District (SNHD)

Sector: regional/local public health department

Geographic Locations of Work: 14 priority zip codes in Clark County, NV

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Michael Johnson
Southern Nevada Health District
280 South Decatur Boulevard
P.O. Box 3902
Las Vegas, NV 89107
Tel: 702-759-1286
Email: johnsonmi@snhd.org

Project Overview: Southern Nevada Health District is working in priority areas for African American and Hispanic Americans to increase tobacco-free environments; make healthy food more accessible by working towards the adoption of nutrition standards for a food pantry; increasing the number of vending machines in compliance with nutrition standards; promoting increased access to healthier foods and adoption of healthy food resolutions; and increasing the number of certified lactation consultants in programs serving priority populations. They are also conducting a health impact assessment to prioritize pedestrian improvement projects and an assessment of park access in priority zip codes to identify barriers and ensure walkability. For community-clinical linkages, they are increasing the number of community health workers supporting referrals to community programs.

New Mexico

Recipient: Presbyterian Healthcare Services

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: South Valley, the International District, and the 2nd/4th Street Corridor in Bernalillo County, NM

Priority Populations: American Indians; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Leigh Caswell
Presbyterian Center for Community Health
8300 Constitution Avenue NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110
Tel: 505-559-6859
Email: lcaswell@phs.org

Project Overview: Presbyterian Healthcare Services focuses on American Indians and Hispanic Americans living in the South Valley of Bernalillo County, NM. This project is focusing on improving access to and affordability of fresh produce through Mobile Farmer’s Market, food pharmacies, a local food hub, commercial and institutional policies and procurement, and vouchers and benefits enrollment; creating new walking paths in public and workplace land, connecting community sites and clinics with safe walking routes, improving connectivity and affordability of bike share programs and bus transit, integrating pedestrian planning into regional master planning, and expanding use of employee health incentive programs; and expanding the use of the Wellness Referral Center, which allows providers to refer patients to community and public health supports like classes, activity programs, healthy food access, and breastfeeding resources.

New York

Recipient: Cicatelli Associates, Inc. (CAI)

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Location of Work: Ferry Street Corridor, Buffalo, NY

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Dawn Middleton
CAI
505 8th Avenue, Suite 1900
New York, NY 10018
Email: Dmiddleton@caiglobal.org

Project Overview: The Ferry Corridor Partnership leverages existing community assets to address preventable risk factors that are driving chronic diseases among African Americans living and working along the Ferry Corridor. The project focuses on strategies that promote tobacco-free living, improved nutrition, and increased availability of, and access to, health or community programs.

Recipient Name: The Institute for Family Health

Sector: federally qualified health center

Geographic Location of Work: Bronx, NY

Priority Populations: African American; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Charmaine Ruddock
The Institute for Family Health
2006 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10035
Tel: 212-633-0800 x1291
Email: cruddock@institute.org

Project Overview: Bronx Health REACH builds on past efforts to improve access to nutrition, physical activity, clinical care and preventive health programs for African Americans and Hispanic Americans in the Bronx including: 1) #Not62: The Campaign for a Healthy Bronx, which has garnered support throughout the borough to address local determinants of health; 2) the Complete the Grand Concourse Campaign, a complete streets movement impacting the borough’s busiest thoroughfare; 3) the establishment of farm share programs and farmers’ markets; and 4) a collaboration with partners to increase healthier foods in more than 50 local bodegas/corner stores. All interventions will be designed and implemented in concert with coalition members and community partners.

North Carolina

Recipient: RAO Community Health

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Anson, Cabarrus, Iredell, Mecklenburg, Union counties, NC

Priority Populations: African Americans; Asian Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Bernard Davis
RAO Community Health
103 Commerce Drive Suite 104
Huntersville, NC 28078
Tel: 704-659-7699
Email: bdavis@rosedaleid.com

Project Overview: RAO is developing healthier food offerings at food banks and farmers markets; a healthy food voucher program at a local supermarket chain; and outreach and education on healthy food choices to special populations through health fairs. RAO is establishing breastfeeding peer support programs and providing outreach and education on the benefits of breastfeeding. Physical activity strategies and activities include providing land use plans to local county governments and businesses and developing a guide summarizing safe places to exercise, establishing walking “teams,” and providing outreach and education at health fairs on the benefits of physical activity. The community-clinical linkages strategies and activities include implementing a community health worker model (patient navigation) and developing and distributing an annual community resource guide.

Ohio

Recipient: Cuyahoga County District Board of Health

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: east-side neighborhoods within the city of Cleveland, OH

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Martha Halko
Cuyahoga County Board of Health
5550 Venture Drive
Parma, OH 44130
Tel: 216-201-2001 x1504
Email: mhalko@ccbh.net

Project Overview: Cuyahoga County are: 1) leveraging their branded healthy food retail Good Food Here network and working with partners developing and providing alternative food options in their targeted neighborhoods; 2) implementing and reinforcing nutrition standards; and 3) increasing timely, accessible, and culturally appropriate lactation support. Cuyahoga is supporting the design and implementation of protected bicycle facilities through improved land use and new environmental design strategies to increase African-American resident use within the greater Cleveland area. Finally, Cuyahoga is training and deploying community health workers certified in evidence-based chronic disease self-management programs in target neighborhoods while also building a robust two-way electronic health record program with United Way 2-1-1 for real-time resource referrals.

Oregon

Recipient: Multnomah County Health Department

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Locations of Work: north/northeast Portland, East Portland, East County/Gresham areas of Multnomah County, OR

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Ms. Tameka Brazile
Multnomah County Health Department
426 SW Stark Street
Floor 8
Portland, OR 97204
Tel: 503-988-7760
Email: tameka.brazile@multco.us

Project Overview: Multco REACH will work in nutrition, physical activity, and community-clinical linkage strategies to reach infants, youth, adults, and elders to achieve policy, systems, and environmental improvements that reduce chronic disease disparities.

Pennsylvania

Recipient: Allegheny County

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: Allegheny County, PA, including City of Pittsburgh

Priority Population: African Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Roderick Harris
Allegheny County Health Department
542 4th Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Tel: 412-578-8005
Email: Roderick.Harris@AlleghenyCounty.US

Project Overview: Allegheny County and multiple partners are collaborating to improve nutrition, physical activity, and community-clinical linkages for African Americans living in target communities through a variety of activities, ranging from expanding healthy food policies to implementing a pharmacist navigation and referral program.

Recipient: Geisinger Clinic

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Scranton, PA

Priority Population: Hispanic

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Brian Ebersole
Geisinger Clinic
100 North Academy Avenue
Danville, PA 17822
Tele: 570-351-1145
Email: beebersole@geisinger.edu

Project Overview:
Geisinger and its partners will focus on Springboard Health’s “Cambiamos- Transforming the Health of Scranton” to collaboratively design and implement improvements for important health and social outcomes for the Hispanic community in Scranton, Pennsylvania through nutrition and community clinical linkages strategies. A coalition of community stakeholders will continue its current work optimizing food pantries, aligning distribution of state and federal resources, and helping connect healthy and culturally appropriate food sources with the people who need them. Geisinger will utilize bilingual staff and community leaders to work directly in Scranton to help connect patients in this target population to medical care and community resources.

Recipient: Pennsylvania State University Hershey Medical Center

Sector: state university

Geographic Location of Work: Lebanon and Reading, PA

Priority Population: Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Jennifer Kraschnewski
Pennsylvania State University Hershey Medical Center
500 University Drive, MC H034
P.O. Box 850
Hershey, PA 17033
Tel: 717-531-8161
Email: jlk59@psu.edu

Project Overview: Pennsylvania State University Hershey Medical Center is working to improve health outcomes for Hispanic Americans in Lebanon and Reading, PA by establishing healthy nutrition standards across different sectors; supporting the Healthy Corner Store Initiative; providing healthier food access at community venues; increasing electronic benefit transfer acceptance; and creating bilingual hospital-based breastfeeding programming and support with Women, Infant and Children (WIC). To improve physical activity opportunities, Penn State is promoting existing and new walking/bike trails that connect parks, schools, businesses, and community facilities; supporting the improvement of cities’ recreational infrastructure; and increasing school involvement in physical activity through safe routes and shared use agreements. Penn State and partners are expanding diabetes prevention program offerings and training local, bilingual community health workers to connect individuals with chronic disease prevention programs.

Texas

Recipient: American Heart Association

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Location of Work: El Paso, TX

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Laura King Hahn
American Heart Association
7272 Greenville Road
Dallas, TX 75231
Tel: 408-412-8825
Email: laura.king.hahn@heart.org

Project Overview: The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association (AHA/ASA) is working collaboratively with health coalitions in the county of El Paso, Texas, to strengthen health systems and accelerate improvements across tobacco, nutrition, and physical activity.

Recipient: City of San Antonio Metropolitan Health District

Sector: city government agency; local health department

Geographic Location of Work: west, south, and east sides of San Antonio, TX

Priority Populations: African Americans; Hispanic Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Colleen Bridger
City of San Antonio Metropolitan Health District
111 Soledad, Suite 1000
San Antonio, TX 78205
Tel: 210-207-8706
Email: colleen.bridger@sanantonio.gov

Project Overview: San Antonio is expanding upon the current areas and strategies in use by Metro Health’s Healthy Neighborhoods program to implement the tobacco, nutrition, and community-clinical linkage strategies to reduce health disparities among African Americans and Hispanic Americans.

Recipient: Faith Formula Human Services

Sector: non-profit

Geographic Locations of Work: Dallas County, TX

Priority Population: African American and Hispanic

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Dr. Ronya Green
616 West Kiest Boulevard
Dallas, TX 75224-3457
(210) 867-5446 | ronyagreen@gmail.com

Project Overview: Faith Formula Human Services is working to increase access to healthy nutrition resources through education and a food pantry. They are also working to increase breastfeeding support and provide health and prevention outreach to underserved populations through community health workers and patient care navigators.

Washington

Recipient: Public Health Seattle & King County

Sector: county government agency; local health department

Geographic Locations of Work: South Seattle, SeaTac, and Tukwila, WA

Priority Populations: African Americans; Asian Americans

Principal Investigator Contact Information:
Nadine Chan
Public Health Seattle & King County
401 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1300
Seattle, WA 98104
Tel: 206-263-8784
Email: nadine.chan@kingcounty.gov

Project Overview: Public Health Seattle & King County is making healthy food more affordable and accessible by creating a purchasing cooperative of small ethnic grocers and food banks and working with food banks to adopt healthy nutrition standards. They are promoting breastfeeding in workplaces and expanding culturally appropriate breastfeeding services. They are building capacity for bike, pedestrian, and transit projects for local governments to plan and design for their neighborhoods. They are working with pharmacists, community health workers, and other community-based organizations to strengthen referral patterns to culturally appropriate clinical and preventive care.