WJCC Receives $10,000 “Healthy Kids” Grant From General Mills

                                   
WJCC Schools has been awarded a $10,000 “Champions for Healthy Kids” grant from the General Mills Foundation. The grant will allow the School Health Initiative Program (SHIP) to partner with local preschools to promote healthy lifestyle habits by working with the Williamsburg-James City County Community Action Agency (CAA) to develop a model health promotion program for its eight Head Start classes.
“We expect that the General Mills Foundation grant will directly benefit the students, families, and staff who work with the Head Start program,” said Dr. David Gaston, Senior Director of WJCC’s Specialized Education Services Department. “Instructional materials and active play equipment will be purchased for the students, and staff will receive training to help them easily integrate nutrition education and physical activity into their children’s daily schedules.”
Cooking demonstrations will be offered to families with healthy recipes and special programs to provide tips on how to promote family wellness. The grant will also provide chances for CAA staff to improve their own personal health and fitness through onsite classes. Funding will also make it possible for a joint health promotion program that SHIP and the WJCC CAA will develop to share with other local preschools.
More than 1,100 organizations applied for the General Mills Foundation Grant. SHIP was one of 50 national recipients. The need for this grant arises out of data that shows that the prevalence of obesity in 2- to 5-year-olds has doubled since the early 1970s. National survey data suggests one-third of obese preschool children will become obese adults. Early education, physical activity, and healthy eating through family and school-based interventions can help to reverse these trends. The SHIP program has worked for the past five years to provide these components to students and their families in the Williamsburg area, and looks forward to working with its youngest students in partnership with the CAA.

Photo Caption:  The team that will work to develop a Healthy Habits Program for the WJCC Head Start Program are, seated from left: Keely Flynn, SHIP Program Assistant; Tammy Underwood, SHIP Wellness Integration Specialist; Carol Justis, Head Start Education and Disabilities Coordinator; and Janet Harris, Head Start Health and Mental Health Coordinator.  Standing, from left:  Pam Dannon, SHIP Registered Dietitian; Dr. Denise Corbett, SHIP Coordinator; Dennis Welch, Historic Triangle Building Coordinator; Morris Randall, Head Start Transportation Coordinator; Jocelyn Henry-Whitehead, Head Start Director; Anna Pettijohn, Head Start W&M Intern, and Jennifer Jules-Best, Head Start Family-Community Coordinator.  Not pictured is Reba Bolden, Executive Director, WJCC Community Action Agency.