Highmark Foundation awards more than $338,000 to schools across Pennsylvania and West Virginia
July 12, 2017 | Pittsburgh, Pa.
PITTSBURGH (July 12, 2017) — The Highmark Foundation is awarding a total of $338,363 in grants to 65 schools across Pennsylvania and West Virginia in an effort to make schools healthier places for students.
The Highmark Foundation's "Building Sustainable and Lasting Changes in Schools" grants are part of its Creating a Healthy School Environment Grant and Awards program, which helps schools address specific areas of student health. The grants are awarded to schools that serve children in grades K–12, and they support evidence-based programs that address one of four priority areas: bullying prevention, child injury prevention, healthy eating and physical activity, or environmental health.
"Since a large portion of a child's day is spent in school, the school environment can be one of the most effective settings to promote health and wellness," said Highmark Foundation President Yvonne Cook. "Through this program, we want to help children adopt healthy behaviors and create healthier school environments where they can learn and thrive."
A total of 65 grants are being awarded to vocational, private, parochial and charter schools as well as public school districts. The funds will help each school cultivate a particular program that will address specific needs in its students' health. Some of the proposals were as broad as physical education programs, while others were as specific as waste reduction initiatives through recycling stations and school gardens to promote healthy eating.
The grant breakdown across the Foundation's service area is:
- Western Pennsylvania: 44 grants totaling $225,489
- Central Pennsylvania: 5 grants totaling $29,800
- Northeastern Pennsylvania: 5 grants totaling $34,694
- West Virginia: 11 grants totaling $48,380
Since 2013, the Highmark Foundation has awarded nearly $1.9 million through the "Creating a Healthy School Environment" program to 349 schools in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
About the Highmark Foundation
The Highmark Foundation is a private, charitable organization of Highmark Inc. that supports initiatives and programs aimed at improving community health. The Foundation's mission is to improve the health, well-being and quality of life for individuals who reside in the communities served by Highmark Inc. The Foundation strives to support evidence-based programs that impact multiple counties and work collaboratively to leverage additional funding to achieve replicable models. For more information, visit www.highmarkfoundation.org.
Contact:
Kristy Cramlet
Highmark Health
304-424-9888
kristy.cramlet@highmarkhealth.org