Grant Program: Community Impact Grant

This project, From Punishment to Restoration, aimed to implement a comprehensive intervention to bring about policy and systems change in order to address barriers to successful re-entry in Wisconsin, where the incarceration rate is the highest in the upper Midwest, and the state’s rate of incarceration for African American males is the highest in the nation. Incarceration is a public health problem with widespread negative effects on individuals and communities, including effects related to mental illness, alcohol and other substance addiction and chronic disease, all of which reflect priorities in community health improvement plans across the state. From Punishment to Restoration significantly transformed Wisconsin’s criminal justice landscape by boosting leadership and civic engagement among previously incarcerated individuals in Ex-Prisoners Organizing (EXPO) and performing a Health Impact Assessment (HIA). The HIA played a vital role in public education, highlighting the negative effects of parole and probation revocations on health, resulting in strengthened partnerships with public health organizations. The HIA also influenced agenda setting, legislative efforts and administrative changes at local and state levels, demonstrating its comprehensive impact on criminal justice reform in Wisconsin.

This project, Cultivate Health Initiative, aimed to build capacity for garden-based education programs through professional development and technical assistance for educators and community leaders. School-based garden interventions have the potential to promote healthy eating behaviors and impact obesity in children. The initiative successfully advanced garden-based education by aligning stakeholders, establishing a strong communications infrastructure, surpassing professional goals and prioritizing resource development and dissemination. Cultivate Health Initiative’s lasting impact was evident in its widespread reach, stakeholder engagement and policy influence, fostering a thriving ecosystem for garden-based education across the state.

This project, led by Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD), aimed to ensure students with mental health concerns achieve wellbeing, maximize their potential to engage in their education and grow academically to attain educational success. Low-income students are twice as likely to experience mental health concerns, and students of color are overrepresented among MMSD students living in poverty. These students also face disparities in access to mental health services, with only 20 percent receiving community support compared to 50 percent of their economically-advantaged peers. Multiple studies substantiate links between participation in mental health services and improved mental health and school participation and performance. The Behavioral Health in Schools (BHS) program, initially piloted in three schools, successfully expanded to 13 schools over five years. The population of students grew 63 percent annually, and clients were consistently seen for an average of 17 sessions per year. The program primarily served traditionally underserved students. Notable improvements were reported among elementary school students, while middle school outcomes varied. Caregivers emphasized positive changes in their child’s mental health and functioning and expressed additional desire to work on family communication. Finally, the COVID-19 pandemic brought unexpected benefits and challenges, including highlighting the vital role of virtual sessions and concerns about equity in service access.

The Southwestern Wisconsin Community Action Program (SWCAP),an anti-poverty agency that works with the five-county region of Grant, Green, Iowa, Lafayette and Richland counties, is using its award to fight Wisconsin’s rural opioid crisis.

In the span of the last 100 years, however, the Menominee Nation community has experienced severely limited access to healthy foods, with a dramatic increase in Type 2 diabetes and coronary heart diseases that occur at a disproportionately higher rate compared to the state’s average. Through this initiative, the Menominee Tribe and its Department of Agriculture and Food Systems will create a renewed food system by focusing on access to healthy food, agricultural best practices, raising livestock, Menominee cultural teachings and peer support. The initiative will work to assert tribal sovereignty through the customization of a Menominee Food Code, beginning with food safety regulation of traditional tribal food systems, while promoting healthy food consumption and economic development. By reclaiming a tribally driven food system, the initiative will support a healthy and culturally vibrant Menominee Nation.

High-quality early childhood education is an evidence-based intervention proven to reduce the risk of health disparities like heart disease, drug and alcohol abuse and teen pregnancies. The lack of quality early care and education options has resulted in an achievement gap seen in children as early as eighteen months old with lower neurological, cognitive and social emotional development. With this Community Impact Grant, the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association (WECA) and its partners, including childcare providers and parents, will develop The Wisconsin Early Education Shared Services Network (WEESN) – Milwaukee initiative to strengthen the quality and continuity of local child care providers in the most under-resourced areas of Milwaukee. The initiative will work to stabilize child care by connecting family and group child care programs to pool resources and capitalize on economies of scale and expertise. By sharing resources, knowledge, and staffing, child care programs can build capacity in their caregiving, and improve outcomes for young children and their families. WEESSN-Milwaukee will promote and sustain more accessible, high-quality early care and education opportunities, ultimately benefiting children, working parents, child care providers and their communities.

This initiative, designed for and by Black men, aims to improve the mental-emotional health and well-being of Black men in Southeastern Wisconsin in order to achieve higher quality of life and longevity. In Wisconsin, African American men have a life expectancy seven years shorter than white men and are more likely to report serious psychological stress and feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness. Black men face health equity issues including low mental health literacy and education, stigma around mental health problems and lack of access to mental health support services. Their stress has been further heightened by the dual crises of COVID-19 and racial injustice. The initiative will normalize and destigmatize mental health issues in the Black community, improve access to mental health supports and help men address the historical and current health inequities they are experiencing.

Through First Breath Families, a partnership project between the UW-Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention and the Wisconsin Women’s Health Foundation (WWHF),the WWHF will significantly expand its efforts to bring tobacco cessation services to high-risk individuals, families and communities across Wisconsin and will seek policy change that will provide sustainable funding for these services.

This project, Improving Assisted Living Quality through Collaborative System Change, aimed to expand current Wisconsin Coalition for Collaborative Excellence in Assisted Living (WCCEAL) efforts to establish a comprehensive and robust quality infrastructure for Wisconsin Assisted Living Communities (ALCs).The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has developed a comprehensive system to measure and monitor quality of care received in nursing homes, but ALCs are typically not included in these efforts to measure, monitor and improve quality of care. The absence of a quality measurement system for ALCs is underscored by the fact that they are not regulated by the federal government, and as such, the standards of care and training and even the definitions of “assisted living” vary from state to state. Over the course of the project, WCCEAL membership was increased by 28 percent and three important policies were adopted by the Division of Medicaid Services (DMS) at the state level to help sustain the initiative. Additionally, new partnerships were cultivated and existing partnerships were strengthened over the course of this project.

Nationally and in Wisconsin, there is a void of culturally and linguistically appropriate mental health services for diverse populations. This threatens the well-being of Dane County’s Latino community, whose members face significant challenges to their mental health from the psychological stress associated with racial, cultural and linguistic isolation and stigmatization. The Community Impact Grant awarded to Centro Hispano of Dane County and its academic and community partners will advance the quality of accessible linguistically and culturally competent services that support the mental health of the Latino community in Dane County. This project will help increase the number of trained professionals to serve Latino communities through a partnership with UW–Madison School of Education, specifically for native Spanish heritage speakers.