BUILD Health Challenge Announces 18 Inaugural Awardees from Across the Nation

WASHINGTON, June 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The BUILD Health Challenge announced today that it awarded grants to 18 groundbreaking projects that aim to improve health in low-income communities. The projects were recognized on the strengths of their BOLD, UPSTREAM, INTEGRATED, LOCAL, and DATA-DRIVEN approaches to address the social and environmental factors that have the greatest impact on health. 

The BUILD Health Challenge was founded by The Advisory Board Company, the de Beaumont Foundation, the Colorado Health Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to encourage community partnerships among local non-profit organizations, hospitals and health systems, and health departments to improve the health and well-being of their residents.

The funding collaborative awarded both implementation and planning grants to support community-driven initiatives. Seven implementation awardees received $250,000 over two years to strengthen existing partnerships, jump-start more advanced health data and analytics initiatives, and expand their impact. Eleven planning awardees received $75,000 to kick-start still-nascent projects addressing specific health challenges with a committed group of community partners. The partnering health system or systems on each implementation award have also committed a 1:1 match with financial and in-kind support to advance the partnership's goals.

In addition, the BUILD Health Challenge will provide technical assistance for awardees in policy development, monitoring and evaluation, and more from the Practical Playbook, an interactive, web-based tool to facilitate, promote and inspire collaboration between primary care and public health professionals to improve population health; County Health Rankings and Roadmaps, which provide guidance and tools to understand how health is influenced by where we live, learn, work, and play; and the Prevention Institute, a national non-profit organization that promotes policies, organizational practices, and collaborative efforts to prevent illness and injury and promote equity in the first place.

The BUILD Health Challenge Implementation Grant Awardees:

The Healthy Ontario Initiative of Ontario, California, will improve access to healthy, affordable food and safe places to be active in order to reduce high rates of obesity and obesity-related diseases. Led by Partners for Better Health, County of San Bernardino Department of Public Health, and San Antonio Regional Hospital

Engaging the Community in New Approaches to Healthy Housing of Cleveland, Ohio, will remediate substandard housing in the Brooklyn Center neighborhood to curb lead poisoning, asthma, and heart disease. Led by Environmental Health Watch, Cleveland Department of Public Health, and The MetroHealth System

Healthy Homes East Bank of Des Moines, Iowa, will collaborate to reduce asthma-related hospital visits by improving social and environmental factors in East Bank neighborhoods. Led by Polk County Housing Trust Fund, Polk County Health Department, Broadlawns Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center, and UnityPoint Health

In Albuquerque, New Mexico, Addressing Healthcare's Blindside in Albuquerque's South Side will expand access to healthy food and equip healthcare providers to refer patients to a service hub to address social and economic needs of community members in Albuquerque's Southeast Heights and South Valley neighborhoods. Led by Adelante Development Center, Bernalillo County Office of Health and Social Services, and Presbyterian Healthcare Services

The Bronx Healthy Buildings Program of Bronx, New York, will improve housing conditions and energy efficiency for low-income residents in five Bronx neighborhoods to address high rates of asthma and preventable hospitalizations. Led by Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and Montefiore Medical Center

Improving Health through a Sustainable Food System of Pasadena, Texas, will develop a community-supported food system to reduce obesity and improve obesity-related health outcomes. Led by Houston Food Bank, Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, CHI St. Luke's Health, and Memorial Hermann Health System

San Pablo Area Revitalization Collaborative of San Pablo, California, will promote economic development and reduce health disparities in West Oakland. Led by East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation, Alameda County Public Health Department, and Alta Bates Summit Medical Center

The BUILD Health Challenge Planning Grant Awardees:

In Los Angeles, California, Youth Driven Healthy South Los Angeles will develop a plan to engage youth leaders to create a community with healthy food and inviting urban spaces while engaging promising area youth in leadership development to foster a sustained movement towards health, safety, and wellness. Led by National Health Foundation, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, and California Medical Center

Increasing Access to Behavioral Health Screening and Support in Aurora of Aurora, Colorado, will help connect families to a network of both clinical and community-based resources to address needs. Led by Together Colorado, Tri-County Health Department, and Children's Hospital Colorado

Project ACCESS (Assessment and Community Collaboration to Engage and Strengthen Southeast Colorado Springs) of Colorado Springs, Colorado, will assess health data and research, engage community members, and mobilize the community to improve neighborhood safety and reduce violence. Led by YMCA of the Pikes Peak Region, El Paso County Public Health, and Penrose-St. Francis Health Services

Health Forward/Salud Adelante of Chicago, Illinois, will integrate legal, medical, and public health services to improve the health of the immigrant population in the New City and East Garfield Park neighborhoods. Led by Legal Assistance Foundation, Chicago Department of Public Health, and Cook County Health and Hospital System

Northeast Denver Unified of Denver, Colorado, will develop solutions to the social, environmental, and economic factors that have the greatest impact on child health and wellness. Led by The Civic Canopy, Denver Public Health, and Denver Health's Community Health Services

Healing Together: Preventing Youth Violence in Upton/Druid Heights of Baltimore, Maryland, will develop a comprehensive youth violence prevention plan for the Druid Hill and Upton Heights neighborhoods. Led by Druid Heights Community Development Center, Baltimore City Health Department, and R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland Medical Center

Healthy Hill Initiative of Springfield, Massachusetts, will improve public safety and spur economic development in the Old Hill neighborhood. Led by HAPHousing, Springfield Department of Health and Human Services, Baystate Health System, and Sisters of Providence Health System

Chandler Park Healthy Neighborhood Strategy of Detroit, Michigan, will revitalize the blighted neighborhoods surrounding Chandler Park to create job opportunities, improve access to healthy food, strengthen transit infrastructure, and reduce crime. Led by Eastside Community Network, Detroit Department of Health and Wellness Promotion, and St. John Providence Health System – Community Health Investment Corporation

Seattle Chinatown-International District Healthy of Seattle, Washington, will develop a plan to improve economic development and housing in the city's International District. Led by InterIm Community Development Association, Public Health Seattle and King County, and Swedish Medical Center

In Portland, Oregon, BUILDing Health and Equity in East Portland will work to reduce health disparities in East Portland by expanding access to affordable housing, green spaces, and healthy food. Led by Oregon Public Health Institute, Multnomah County Health Department, Providence Health and Services, Kaiser Permanente NW, Legacy Health, and Adventist Health

Building a Healthy and Resilient Liberty City of Liberty City, Florida, will collaborate to reduce violence and more effectively assist trauma victims in their recovery in the Liberty City neighborhood. Led by Florida Institute for Health Innovation, Florida Department of Health – Miami-Dade County, and Jackson Health System

The BUILD Health Challenge is designed to accelerate collaborative approaches to addressing the social and environmental determinants of health across the nation. Working in close partnership with the awardees, the BUILD Health Challenge will also identify and disseminate the most promising models of population health improvement to stimulate these kinds of initiatives in other communities.

The Advisory Board Company is the leading provider of insight-driven technology, research, and services to organizations in transforming industries. Through its innovative membership model, the Company collaborates with more than 230,000 leaders at 5,200 member organizations to elevate performance and solve their most pressing challenges. The Company provides strategic guidance, actionable insights, web-based software solutions, and comprehensive implementation and management services. For more information, visit www.advisory.com.

Since 1998, the de Beaumont Foundation has worked to transform the practice of public health in the United States. Founded by Pierre S. de Beaumont, the Foundation primarily supports practice-based projects that provide training and education to the public health workforce; build public health infrastructure; and improve information and data management through innovative technology. For more information, visit www.debeaumont.org.

The Colorado Health Foundation works to make Colorado the healthiest state in the nation by ensuring that all Colorado kids are fit and healthy and that all Coloradans achieve stable, affordable and adequate health coverage to improve their health with support from a network of primary health care and community services. To advance our mission, the Foundation engages the community through grantmaking, public policy, investing in evaluation, private sector partnerships and strategic communications. For more information, please visit www.ColoradoHealth.org.

The Kresge Foundation is a $3.5 billion private, national foundation that works to expand opportunities in America's cities through grantmaking and investing in arts and culture, education, environment, health, human services and community development efforts in Detroit. In 2014, the Board of Trustees approved 408 awards totaling $242 million; $138 million was paid out to grantees over the course of the year. In addition, Kresge's Social Investment Practice made commitments totaling $20.4 million during the year. For more information, visit kresge.org.

For more than 40 years the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has worked to improve the health and health care of all Americans. We are striving to build a national Culture of Health that will enable all Americans to live longer, healthier lives now and for generations to come. For more information, visit www.rwjf.org.

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