Contact: Meredith Jorss at 202-769-5554 or mjorss@strength.org
Washington, DC - The national nonprofit anti-hunger campaign No Kid Hungry has awarded over $63,000 in grants to support Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) agencies across the country. Eight agencies and their partners received funding up to $10,000 from the campaign in its first-ever round of grants aimed at supporting children ages 0-5.
The grants are designed to address declining WIC participation rates and provide funding for agencies to test strategies aimed to improve WIC participant experiences. No Kid Hungry worked in partnership with the National WIC Association to promote the opportunity and ensure the funded projects are innovative and from a diverse range of local WIC agencies.
"We are thrilled to be able to support these innovative ideas aimed at transforming the WIC experience for kids and families - at the WIC clinic, at the grocery store and beyond," says Elyse Kovalsky, senior manager of program innovation at No Kid Hungry. "The enthusiastic response we received for this grant opportunity highlights the dedication of WIC agencies across the country to improving WIC participants' experience of the program, and their desire to support local staff and partners to more effectively connect with the families in their communities."
The following WIC agencies and community partners received grant funding:
- Thames Valley Council for Community Action, New London, Connecticut
- Public Health Madison & Dane County WIC, Wisconsin
- Community Action Agency serving Jackson, Lenawee and Hillsdale Counties of Michigan
- Navajo WIC Nutrition Program, New Mexico
- Allegheny County Health Department WIC, Pennsylvania
- Family Health Council of Central Pennsylvania, Camp Hill, Pennsylvania
- Brown County WIC, South Dakota
- University of Tennessee & Knox County Tennessee WIC, Tennessee
"The National WIC Association is excited to see the range of creative and innovative projects being implemented and we look forward to sharing findings from these projects with the wider WIC community," says Rev. Douglas Greenaway, President & CEO at the National WIC Association.
WIC is one of the most important and effective federal nutrition programs. Benefits are for children under the age of five or women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. Through WIC, parents and caregivers can get nutritious foods for their young children, as well as access to important services at WIC clinics, including nutrition education, counseling and referrals to local health and welfare agencies."
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About No Kid Hungry
No child should go hungry in America. But 1 in 6 kids will face hunger this year. No Kid Hungry is ending childhood hunger through effective programs that provide kids with the food they need. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization working to end hunger and poverty. Join us at NoKidHungry.org