Sometimes we work with community groups so we can assist them with funding. The Foundation often awards grants to organizations in the community, but also assists community organizations in their grant writing. One of the grants the Foundation wrote was for Framework Osteoporosis Education and Prevention, a program of the Women s Health Resource Center. The program is developed in cooperation with the Community Health Improvement Center, Prairie Farms, Macon County Health Department and Decatur Public Schools. The grant is funded by the Illinois Department of Public Health Office of Women s Health.
Framework is composed of two parts.
Teachers follow up in two to three weeks with a 20-minute video about healthy eating and exercise, provided by the Dairy Council. In the fourth week, students are given a test to measure their retention. Larson expects that kids will remember 80 to 90 percent of the information imparted through the program. We ve probably instructed around 700 to 750 students and about 125 parents through the grant, with some matching of funds done out of the Women s Health Resource Center, says Larson. Part two of Framework is implemented by the Community Health Improvement Center.