Grant Program: Community Opportunity Grant

Nearly 1 in 5 children lack access to nutritious food in Dane County, a number that is nearly double the statewide rate and indicates the high need for food access interventions. Children are at an increased risk for learning loss and food insecurity during the summer months, especially low-income youth and youth of color. Summer programming that combines enrichment with good nutrition can help address these issues. The REAP Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) Expansion initiative was designed to implement and evaluate best practices for increasing participation in the SFSP. REAP is applying critical analysis to its past implementation and evaluation activities to ensure that it can continue to offer fun, interactive, substantive educational activities during the summer school break that will reach as many food-insecure youth as possible. Evaluation results showed an overwhelmingly positive response to the program among both adults and children. Public awareness, families fed, and locally-sourced produce increased across the city through marketing and promotion efforts that REAP coordinated, which will be funded in part by the City of Madison moving forward. This project led to significant outcomes that demonstrated a potentially replicable model based on best practices for summer food programming and solid recommendations to further strengthen outcomes of this program.

The West Allis West Milwaukee School District determined that it needed to address and improve its rate of chronic absenteeism in order to improve both academic achievement and health outcomes. The project’s results suggest specific interventions and policy and procedure changes that may help improve chronic absenteeism at the elementary school level.

Educators and public health officials in Door County recognized the growing need to better prepare children with the necessary social skills to be successful in school. The project results suggest that a uniform evidence-based educational program designed for schools and community settings could help teachers, parents and caregivers improve children’s social, emotional and problem-solving skills, thereby increasing readiness for school and learning.

The Smart Meds program uses a Comprehensive Medication Reviews (CMR) to help low income, at risk older adults with chronic health conditions and complex medication regimens in managing their medications safely, in order to reduce adverse drug events and falls that lead to hospitalizations and emergency room visits. This project supported the implementation and evaluation of Smart Meds in pharmacy clinic-based sites within a large local health system. Results, including a decrease in hospital readmission rates for Smart Meds participants, suggest that implementing CMRs into clinical workflow is an effective way to support older adults’ medication management needs.

The community of Cross Plains, Wisconsin determined that it needed to promote nutrition and physical activity in order to address this small, rural community’s troubling obesity rate. The project’s results suggest that strategic and organized social support networks as well as community gardens promoted across community, childcare and senior settings are both effective ways to engage residents in activities that improve nutrition and increase physical activity.

Jackson County recognized that it needed to provide a public health approach to address the misuse and abuse of prescription and illegal injectable drugs occurring within its community. The project’s diverse range of efforts and results suggest that collaborating across sectors and implementing targeted resources and education are effective ways to create sustainable change and improvement in addressing drug misuse and abuse.

In Wisconsin, Transgender, Nonbinary, and Gender Nonconforming (TNG) people face significant barriers to accessing knowledgeable, quality healthcare, contributing to health inequities that include higher rates of anxiety, depression, and suicidality. This project sought to improve both the physical and mental health of Wisconsin’s TNG populations by improving access to healthcare through the creation of a provider directory that links TNG patients to knowledgeable, inclusive healthcare providers.

The goal of this project was to implement policies and create system-level changes to reduce the burden of alcohol abuse in Ashland and Bayfield counties. The total annual economic cost of excessive alcohol use in Ashland County is $22.1 million, and $15 million in Bayfield County. Binge drinking is responsible for 76 percent of the economic cost of excessive alcohol consumption and, in 2014, excessive alcohol consumption in Bayfield County caused at least 115 alcohol-related hospitalizations and 210 alcohol related hospitalizations in Ashland County. In this project, Bayfield and Ashland counties worked in partnership to address the harmful effects of alcohol abuse and misuse. A toolkit consisting of an infographic handout, PowerPoint presentation, and additional resources (ex. signage) was created, reviewed, revised, and professionally printed. It was marketed to community stakeholders in the project area via town hall and community coalition meetings. The grantees saw in northern Wisconsin – particularly in Bayfield County – local changes surrounding alcohol and festivities, including gradual, small changes in policies at local festivals that are creating a safe environment when alcohol is served. There has been an increase locally of thoughtful planning of events involving alcohol, including mandatory carding of attendees, implementing wristbands for those ages 21 and over, and increased availability of non-alcoholic drinks at events.

The Fond du Lac School District recognized that it needed to address the rates of suicide and suicide attempts among its students, and could better do so through the expansion of YScreen, an emotional health screening tool. The project’s results suggest that expanded outreach and education around YScreen, and specifically targeting LGBTQ+ students, who are at higher risk for suicide, is effective for identifying and connecting at-risk students with critical services.