The following bulletin includes information regarding the Well Connected Communities initiative for the week of March 22, 2021:
In this Edition
- Upcoming WCC Webinars
- Reporting
- Important Announcements
- WCC Communications Update
- Additional Resources
- National Health Outreach Conference
Upcoming WCC Webinars
- Professional Development
Food Security as a Unifying Priority
April 22, 2021
1:00 – 2:30 pm ET
We are all somehow connected to food – as growers or makers or servers and certainly, as eaters. While foods and food culture can be unique, food is a vital condition we all need to thrive. Join in a conversation with national voices and Extension peers to explore a variety of starting points and strategies for multi-solving as we work together to create food systems that advance health and well-being. Register for this webinar here.
Watch (17min): Food Systems for Thriving Together
- Youth Voice and Leadership
What’s Up with YAP?: Status of WCC Youth-Adult Partnerships
March 25, 2021
3:00pm – 4:15 pm ET
There are new Youth-Adult Partnership best practices/models emerging from the pandemic that will be described, and a deeper dive will include examples of the new ways youth are working with adults in community health change. Pennsylvania will share what can be done if access to youth is missing right now. Tennessee will focus on its efforts to maintain the traditional YAP and its new docu-series of YAP training videos. Nebraska has youth working to implement action plans and adult Master Volunteers are training newly-recruited diverse youth. Wisconsin will highlight its program “Youth Advocates for Community Change”(YACH). See you Thursday!. Register
WCC Reporting
- Year 2 Q1, 2021 Reporting
- Action Required The Q4 report was due March 15, 2021. Please visit the WCC community portal to upload your report for the period December 1, 2021 – February 28, 2021.
- The reporting will consist of each community submitting a community report – submitted via the WCC community portal
- One LGU Financial Status Report – an excel spreadsheet submitted to bmckay@fourhcouncil.edu
- One Tobacco Separation Protocol validation letter – emailed to bmckay@fourhcouncil.edu
Important Announcements
- Master Volunteer Curriculum
- Please note that the Master Volunteer Curriculum is now public on the WCC Website. Find it here.
WCC Communications Update
- We are getting ready to add a new feature to the public website that maps all of our communities and provides a mini profile for each. (An expanded public community profile is planned for launch soon after that.) Please help us out by providing the following for each of your WCC communities
- Community coalition name
- Coalition online presence/s (on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, website, etc.)
Please send the above information to Jen GE at JGrizzard@fourhcouncil.edu.
- Voices for Healthy Kids Policy Campaign Grant
Please note that this is a two-step application process. Please read through the grant information carefully
Voices for Healthy Kids works around the country to improve or create equitable policies that will make the places kids live, learn and play healthier. Today we announce a call for proposals for the Policy Campaign Opportunity, designed to support advocacy campaigns supporting Voices for Healthy Kids policy priorities with a focus on health equity. We seek to support and drive local, state and tribal policy change efforts that will dramatically improve the health of children with a focus on those experiencing the greatest health disparities including Black, Brown, and Native children or from families from low income.
Short Form Application Timeline
| March 15, 2021 | Call for Short Form Application | |
| April 5, 2021 5 p.m. Pacific | Short Form Application Deadline | |
| April 20, 2021 | Notifications |
Invited Applicants Timeline
| April 20, 2021 | Application Available | |
| May 16, 2021 5 p.m. Pacific | Application Deadline | |
| June 4, 2021 | Notification of Award/Decline |
Applications must be specific to an individual campaign for public policy change in one state, city, town or tribal nation. Applications should focus on public policy changes to reduce health disparities for children in urban, suburban or rural settings who are Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian, and Alaskan Native or from families who have low income.
Voices for Healthy Kids believes campaigns are most successful through collaboration between community organizations, advocacy groups, coalitions and others. Therefore, the Policy Campaign Grant is a collaborative grant. All applications are expected to be submitted as a joint proposal of two or more organizations, either as lead and subgrantee collaboration or as co-leads. Voices for Healthy Kids values authentic community engagement and equity-building strategies in all aspects of supported campaigns and therefore requires at least one of the organizations in the joint proposal to be representative of or serve the interests of the listed priority populations.
Voices for Healthy Kids has a two-step application process in the online grant management system. First, all interested, eligible applicants must submit a short form application. Then, selected applicants will be invited to submit a full application for consideration in a competitive review process.
Applications can be submitted for $50,000 – $200,000 for a duration of up to 18 months and can support non-lobbying and lobbying activities.
- Youth in Action Applications
The 4‑H Youth in Action Program recognizes four confident young leaders with diverse backgrounds and unique perspectives in our core pillar areas: agriculture, civic engagement, healthy living and STEM. Each year, Pillar Winners will experience an exciting year of telling their 4‑H story and celebrating their leadership. Winners receive:
- $5,000 higher education scholarship
- Promotional video showcasing their 4‑H impact story
- All-expenses paid trip to Washington, D.C. for National 4‑H Council’s Legacy Awards
- Networking opportunities with 4‑H celebrities and other prominent alumni
- Recognition as the official 4‑H youth spokesperson for their pillar
Apply Applications should be submitted no later than 11:59 PM PT on Monday, March 29, 2021.
- 2021 National Extension Conference on Volunteerism, April 26-29, 2021
The National Extension Conference on Volunteerism Planning Committee and Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, encourages those who are interested to save April 26-29, 2021, for the National Extension Conference on Volunteerism “NECV” 2021! Plans are underway for an exciting Extension professional conference with a focus on volunteerism at the Hard Rock Hotel and Conference Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This conference is ideal for volunteer-focused professionals who are serving within all areas of Extension programs (4-H, ANR, FCS). For information about calls for proposals and registration opening:
Join the NECV 2021 interest list-serv at: http://eepurl.com/gY8Pzz.
Follow developments on Facebook at www.facebook.com/1NECV/
2021 National Health Outreach Conference, May 3-7, 2021
The conference will be held virtually May 3-7, 2021. With the theme of “The Grand Challenge: Building a Healthy Future for All,” there will be sessions related to health equity, effective behavior change messaging, policy system and environmental change, health behavior, and pandemic response programming. Keynote speakers, concurrent and posters sessions will be relevant for professionals who address health, nutrition, youth development, workforce development, and human development. See https://cvent.me/Ygg1N0 for additional details about the conference.
Purpose: To showcase research, best practices and dissemination strategies that will create positive impact on the health of all Americans.
Goals:
- Educate attendees about best practices for translating current research and health-related recommendations to target audiences, especially youth, minority and workforce audiences.
- Prepare attendees to translate research using communication practices and approaches to address health issues for target audience.
- Explore how to develop successful collaborations of multi-disciplinary partners to effect system, community and individual behavior changes to build population health.