Weekly InsiderMarch 18, 2010

The Center for Health and Health Care in Schools Weekly Insider is a web-enhanced newsletter that offers news alerts, grant announcements and general web site updates delivered directly to your email box on a weekly basis. The Center is located at the School of Public Health and Health Services at The George Washington University Medical Center in Washington, D.C.


New Resources

The Health Education Curriculum Analysis Tool, by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is a guide designed to help schools and school districts conduct clear, complete, and consistent analyses of health education curricula based on the National Health Education Standards and the CDC's Characteristics of Effective Health Education Curricula.

Tools and Documents to Support Immigrant and Refugee Children, found on the Center for Health and Health Care in Schools web site, offers webinars, reports, and articles to help develop skills to work with immigrant and refugee communities.

Trends In Snacking Among U.S. Children, recently published in Health Affairs, discusses the increase in child snacking and its relation to childhood health.

New from the Center

A Healthy Future for All Our Children, a Caring Across Communities video presentation, has been posted to the Center for Health and Health Care in School's website. From 2007 – 2010, 15 school-connected community partnerships funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation have helped immigrant and refugee children with mental health needs. These partnerships, supported through RWJ’s Caring Across Communities multi-site grant initiative, bring together students, educators, mental health agencies and other community organizations to build emotional and behavioral health services for immigrant and refugee children and youth. The Center
for Health and Health Care in Schools, located at the GW School of Public Health and Health Services, has served as the program manager. To view the video, click here.

Supporting Immigrant & Refugee Communities (SIRC) Listserv is now active! The listserv provides an opportunity to pose questions to the field, share information, and network with colleagues nationwide. We will also share lessons learned, tools, and information gained during the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Caring Across Communities grant initiative. For more information and to sign up, click here.

Addressing the Legal Issues Impacting Refugee and Immigrant Families, a video presentation by Mr. Fred Tsao, has been posted to the website. Mr. Tsao presents information on legal issues facing immigrants in the US including legal immigration categories, how immigrants can become citizens, sponsorship, public benefit eligibility, the impact of 1996 Welfare Reform, rules on public charge, and constitutional rights of illegal immigrants. Mr. Tsao is Policy Director at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. To view the video presentation, click on: http://healthinschools.org/en/Immigrant-and-Refugee-Children/Tools-and-Documents/Understanding-the-Legal-Issues-Impacting-Immigrant-Families.aspx

Important Topic

Mold in Schools

• National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities - Mold in my School: What do I do?

• CHHCS School Building Safety: Air Quality, Mold, Chemicals and Pesticides, and Fire Prevention

• The Center for School Mold Help: Official Website

Upcoming Meetings

• Webinar: Ensuring Cultural Competence Across Care Settings. March 18, 2010 at 4:00 PM EST. For more information and register for this event, please click here.

• Webinar: H1N1 - Lessons Learned for Clinical and Public Health Practitioners. March 24, 2010 at 7:00 PM EST. For more information and to register for this event, please click here.

• Phoenix, AZ: Second Annual National Forum on Dropout Prevention Strategies for Native and Tribal Communities. April 18- 21, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://www.dropoutprevention.org/

• Brooklyn Park, MN: 27th Upper Midwest Conference on Adolescents & Children In Need. May 6-7, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://www.cedconference.com/

• Waukesha, WI: Midwest Regional Child and Youth Care Conference. May 25-27, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://www.wacycp.org/Home.html

• Cape Cod, MA: The 1st Annual Global Youth Justice Institute. June 15-17, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://www.globalyouthjustice.org/Training_and_Events.html


Previously Posted Meetings

• San Diego, CA: 27th Annual Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Conference. March 20-24, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://www.brfss2010conference.com/

• Washington, DC: 2010 National AfterSchool Association Convention. April 18-21, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://www.naaconvention.org/registration.html

• Alexandria, VA: Health Effects Institute 2010 Annual Conference. April 25-27, 2010. For more information and register for this event, please visit: http://www.healtheffects.org/annual.htm

• Nebraska City, NE: National Public Health Leadership Development Network - Creating the Future of Leadership Development. April 27-30, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://www.heartlandcenters.slu.edu/nln/events.html

• Portland, OR: Community-Campus Partnerships for Health. May 12-15, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://depts.washington.edu/ccph/conf10-overview.html

• Baltimore, MD: Quality Health Care for Culturally Diverse Populations. October 18-21, 2010. For more information and to register for this event, please visit: http://www.diversityrxconference.org/2010-Conference/162/

Job Opportunities

• The Bronx Health Link - Community Health Organizer and Educator (Bronx, NY)
• South Burlington School District – Substitute School Nurse (South Burlington, VT)
• First Place for Youth - Education & Employment Specialist (Oakland, CA)
• Texans Standing Tall - Researcher/Writer (Austin, TX)
• The Association to Benefit Children - Health Coordinator (New York, NY)
• Edward Bellamy School - School Nurse (Chicopee, MA)

Grant Alerts

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation - Local Funding Partnerships (Deadline: 6/30/10)
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Local Funding Partnerships program seeks to create relationships between the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and local grant makers to fund promising, original projects that can significantly improve the health of vulnerable populations.

US Department of Education - Reducing Youth Alcohol Abuse (Deadline: 4/16/10)
The Reducing Youth Alcohol Abuse program provides funding to develop and implement innovative and effective programs to reduce alcohol abuse in secondary schools. Programs must be able to measure: an increase in the percentage of target students who believe alcohol abuse is harmful to their health; an increase in the percentage of target students who disapprove of alcohol abuse; and a decrease in the percentage of target students who binge drink.

ING - Run For Something Better School Awards Program (Deadline: 4/15/10)
ING Run For Something Better, in partnership with the National Association for Sport and Physical Education, seeks to increase physical activity in students and help fight childhood obesity through the creation of school-based running programs.

National Center for Safe Routes to School - Safe Routes to School Mini-grants (Deadline: 4/7/10)
Safe Routes to School seeks to enable and encourage children to safely walk and bicycle to school through student creativity and leadership skills. Activities funded by the mini-grants should be part of a larger walking and/or bicycling to school effort.

 Boston Bruins Foundation - Youth Program Grants (New England) (Deadline: 4/1/10)
The mission of the Boston Bruins Foundation is to assist charitable organizations that demonstrate a strong commitment to enhancing the quality of life for children in our community. The Foundation concentrates its grantmaking on the following four areas. The Athletic category focuses on nonprofit youth sports organizations. The Academic category supports programs that provide homework assistance and a safe learning environment to develop social and learning skills for pre-school, primary, and middle school children. The Health category addresses research, healthcare, and prevention issues. The Community Outreach category enhances organizations that are working with at-risk youth, including after-school activities.


New Resources

The Health Education Curriculum Analysis Tool, by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is a guide designed to help schools and school districts conduct clear, complete, and consistent analyses of health education curricula based on the National Health Education Standards and the CDC's Characteristics of Effective Health Education Curricula. The guide covers topics such as alcohol and drugs, healthy eating, mental and emotional health, and personal health and wellness.

Tools and Documents to Support Immigrant and Refugee Children, found on the Center for Health and Health Care in Schools web site, offers webinars, reports, and articles to help develop skills to work with immigrant and refugee communities. The site covers topics such as mental health interpretation, screening and assessment, capacity building of school communities to help immigrant and refugee children and their families, and prevention and mental health services for immigrants and refugees.

Trends In Snacking Among U.S. Children, recently published in Health Affairs, discusses the increase in child snacking and its relation to childhood health. According to the article, childhood snacking trends are moving toward three snacks per day, and more than 27 percent of children’s daily calories are coming from snacks. The largest increases have been in salty snacks and candy, and desserts and sweetened beverages remain the major sources of calories from snacks. This upward trend has implications for the future health of children.

Job Opportunities

The Bronx Health Link - Community Health Organizer and Educator (Bronx, NY)
The Bronx Health Link (TBHL) is looking for a Community Health Organizer and Educator.  Duties for this position include the coordination of activities that complement the health promotion activities, community-based research efforts, and public policy work of TBHL. Applicants must be trained organizers with a passion for social justice and health care with at least two years of experience with organizing.  Bilingual English/Spanish speakers are preferred.  For more information and to apply for this position please visit: http://www.idealist.org/if/i/en/av/Job/370930-104

South Burlington School District – Substitute School Nurse (South Burlington, VT)
The South Burlington School District is looking for a substitute school nurse. Qualified candidates must hold a valid license as a Registered Nurse in the state of Vermont. At least one year of relevant experience and an Associates Degree is preferred. Citizenship, residency, or work VISA in United States is required. For more information and to apply to this position, please visit: http://www.schoolspring.com/job.cfm?jid=34417

First Place for Youth - Education & Employment Specialist (Oakland, CA)
First Place for Youth is a nonprofit organization whose programs aim to build self-esteem, self-reliance, and skills necessary for successful independent living among former foster youth. First Place for Youth is seeking a social service professional to work with former foster youth. The selected candidate will work closely with the Manager of Education and Employment to develop strong partnerships with local employment service agencies and the business community to develop employment opportunities for youth. Applicants should have a Bachelor’s degree, three years of experience working with at-risk youth in an employment and educational context, and an excellent knowledge of education and employment resources for youth in the Bay Area. For more information and to apply to this position, please visit: http://www.idealist.org/if/i/en/av/Job/368813-131

Texans Standing Tall - Researcher/Writer (Austin, TX)
Texans Standing Tall is a non-partisan, nonprofit organization that utilizes evidence based community prevention strategies to create a healthier environment for youth. The goal of Texans Standing Tall is to make alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs irrelevant in the lives of youth. Texans Standing Tall is seeking a Researcher/Writer to provide research and data analysis for the organization’s programs. The researcher will be required to conduct policy and strategy research and analysis, write and prepare research reports, and aid in the development of fact sheets and issue briefs to communicate outcomes and needs to local, regional, state and other leaders. Applicants should have a bachelor’s degree or higher, experience in data analysis and report writing, and excellent organizational skills. For more information and to apply to this position, please visit: http://www.idealist.org/if/i/en/av/Job/371468-87

Association to Benefit Children - Health Coordinator (New York, NY)
The Association to Benefit Children is seeking a qualified Health Coordinator for its Head Start and Early Head Start program. The Health Coordinator is responsible for ensuring that all enrolled children have a “medical home” and that parents have access to quality health information so that they can be active partners with health care providers in meeting the health care needs of their children. Applicants must hold an advanced health-related degree, such as in nursing, public health, medicine, and experience working with infants and toddlers. For more information and to apply to this position, please visit: http://www.idealist.org/if/i/en/av/Job/369184-189

Edward Bellamy School - School Nurse (Chicopee, MA)
Edward Bellamy School is seeking a School Nurse. The nurse is responsible for the health and safety of the students within the assigned building. Applicants must be a licensed Registered Nurse and certified in CPR. Citizenship, residency, or work VISA in the United States is required. For more information and to apply to this position, please visit: http://www.schoolspring.com/job.cfm?jid=34410