Featured Grant Opportunity: The Highmark Foundation’s Creating a Healthy School Environment Grants
The Highmark Foundation is building lasting change in schools through their Creating a Healthy School Environment grant program. The grants are available to schools in central and western Pennsylvania and in West Virginia who present programs within three categories in order to improve health and wellness in their schools: Building Sustainable and Lasting Changes in Schools; Advancing Excellence in School Nursing Awards; and Meeting Health Needs Through Supportive Services. Creating a Healthy School Environment grants fall under the Building Sustainable and Lasting Changes in Schools focus area. Priority Areas for the grant program are Bullying Prevention, Child Injury Prevention, Healthy Eating and Physical Activity, and Environmental Health. Applicants must select one and only one priority area on which to focus their funding requests.
In Pennsylvania, grants of up to $10,000 will be awarded to 20 districts implementing programs that improve access to quality school-based health and wellness programs. Mini-grants up to $5,000 will also be awarded to 20 non-public (private, parochial and charter) schools in Pennsylvania. Schools in West Virginia are only eligible to apply for $5,000 mini-grants; awards will be granted to 15 schools.
Applications due Friday, March 18, 2016. You can find more information at the Highmark website www.Highmarkfoundation.org or follow this link for complete program guidelines: http://www.highmarkfoundation.org/pdf/2016 CreatingHealthySchoolEnvironmentGrant.pdf.
By Jen Adams
Highmark Foundation Creating a Healthy School Environment Grants are Now Open! (PA and WV)
The Highmark Foundation is currently offering Creating a Healthy School Environment grants to schools in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Applicants may be public or private schools located within the Highmark service area, which includes 49 Pennsylvania Counties and all 55 West Virginia Counties.*
Applicants must select 1 of the 4 priority areas on which to focus their projects: (1) Bullying Prevention, (2) Child Injury Prevention, (3) Healthy Eating and Physical Activity, and (4) Physical and Environmental Health. Projects must be based on and inclusive of evidence-based programs. The RFP provides a list of suggested evidence-based programs and resources for each priority area, as well as checklists to support baseline and progress data collection and project evaluation. The specifically suggested evidenced-based programs and resources are not required for the Child Injury Prevention, Healthy Eating and Physical Activity, and Physical and Environmental Health priority areas–other evidenced-based options may be proposed. Applicants applying for funds through Bullying Prevention, however, MUST select from the list of programs and resources provided.
Eligible applicants and allowable award sizes for 2015 are described in the RFP as follows:
PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOLS
1. PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICTS (Individual school buildings are not eligible to apply.)
a. Grants up to $10,000 will be awarded to 15 school districts implementing programs that improve access to quality school-based health and wellness programs. We are interested in public schools applying as districts for implementing programs.
b. If awarded, school districts should identify and select schools within their district to receive funding.
2. PRIVATE, CHARTER, VOCATIONAL AND PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS (Grades K-12)
c. Mini-grants up to $5,000 will be awarded to 20 non-public school buildings.
d. Private, parochial and charter schools may only apply for the $5,000 mini-grants.
WEST VIRGINIA SCHOOLS 1. PUBLIC, PRIVATE, CHARTER VOCATIONAL AND PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS (Grades K-12)
a. $5,000 mini-grants will be awarded to 15 schools.
b. West Virginia schools may only apply for the $5,000 mini-grants.
Potential applicants should note the funder indicates, “Grants will not be awarded exclusively for equipment such as treadmills, bikes, etc. Equipment will only be considered if necessary for the implementation of an evidence-based physical activity program such as SPARK.”
All applicants must apply online by the May 8, 2015.
*Highmark service area:
Western Pennsylvania Counties served: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Bedford, Blair, Butler, Cambria, Cameron, Clarion, Clearfield, Crawford, Erie, Elk, Fayette, Forest, Greene, Huntingdon, Indiana, Jefferson, Lawrence, McKean, Mercer, Potter, Somerset, Venango, Warren, Westmoreland and Washington
Central Pennsylvania Counties served: Adams, Berks, Centre, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Fulton, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Mifflin, Montour, Northampton, Northumberland, Perry, Schuylkill, Snyder, Union and York
West Virginia: All counties in West Virginia are eligible to apply.
Good Luck! :o)
