The Wellmark Foundation Funds Four Health Improvement Projects in South Dakota

April 16, 2007

Printer-Friendly Version

Contact:
Angela Feig
515.245.4551
feigab@wellmark.com

(Des Moines, Iowa) – The Wellmark Foundation funded four health improvement grants in South Dakota totaling $242,646 at its recent board of directors meeting. Organizations receiving grants in the designated health priority area of health literacy include:

• Black Hills State University in Spearfish, S.D., received a $62,381 grant to implement a health literacy assessment and improvement project for members of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe. The project will strive to improve health outcomes among tribal members with diabetes.
• A $67,250 grant will allow Sanford Health Foundation in Sioux Falls, S.D., to create a coordinated health education curriculum for use in South Dakota schools. The curriculum will be piloted in cooperation with the Brandon Valley School District at Valley Spring Elementary School.
• The Sioux Falls School District in Sioux Falls, S.D., received a $65,000 grant to implement a health literacy education project to improve the health literacy of 450 elementary students and their families. The project will pilot the curriculum, which focuses on nutrition, oral health, mental health, immunizations and safety, at Hawthorne Elementary School.
• A $48,015 grant will allow the University of South Dakota to implement a nutrition education project for individuals with developmental disabilities who have diabetes or are at risk for developing the disease. The project will develop nutrition education materials with appropriate readability and literacy levels to enable these individuals to make healthy lifestyle choices.

The Wellmark Foundation has provided nearly $12 million to fund 350 health-related grants in Iowa and South Dakota since 1997, including $574,147 this cycle. “The Wellmark Foundation collaborates with non-profit and governmental organizations in Iowa and South Dakota to build healthier communities,” says Matthew McGarvey, director of The Wellmark Foundation. “We are happy to support these comprehensive projects that will positively impact the health outcomes of many individuals and communities in South Dakota,” says McGarvey.

The Wellmark Foundation is a private, non-profit foundation created by Wellmark, Inc., doing business as Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa. Visit The Wellmark Foundation's Web site at www.wellmark.com/foundation for a list of grant recipients and grant application instructions.  Applications for the next round of community responsive grants are due June 19, 2007. Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield and The Wellmark Foundation are independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.