The Sussex County Health Coalition has been selected to participate in Delaware’s SNAP-Ed “Healthy in a SNAP” program through a grant offered by Delaware Social Services and implemented by the University of Delaware.
Sussex County Health Coalition is one of three sub-grantees that will be responsible for increasing awareness about the benefits of healthy eating, exercise and minimizing food insecurity in Delaware.
The Food Bank of Delaware and Delaware State University were also awarded sub-grantee roles for the “Healthy in a Snap” program.
The “Healthy in a SNAP” program is focused on implementing targeted outreach strategies, including proactive marketing campaigns, collaboration with community organizations, and utilizing various communication channels to reach underserved populations. An emphasis on creating culturally diverse programming that is available and delivered in easily accessible locations will be a focus, as well as developing targeted educational initiatives specifically designed for adults ages 18–69. Additional emphasis will be centered on expanding the “Healthy in a SNAP” social media and website to provide comprehensive information on current SNAP-Ed programming and resources.
A long-time convener of non-profit organizations focused on education, health, and overall family wellness, SCHC’s role in this grant will center on creating a county-wide action plan that will support the needs in Sussex County with regards to nutrition security. The Coalition will work in tandem with the University of Delaware Cooperative Extension and designated Stakeholders to complete a SNAP-Ed landscape analysis addressing critical action items.
Those action items will include:
- Gaining access to SNAP.
- Accessing barriers that currently hinder SNAP participation and utilization.
- Accessing service providers barriers and needs to gain increased enrollment and engagement of SNAP participants.
- Identifying current strength-based practices for scalability.
- Recommending pilots that can address barriers to engagement and increasing utilization/behavior change.
SCHC is excited for the opportunity to provide these services in the form of strategic partner engagement, community, and landscape analysis. The grant work for the “Healthy in a SNAP” program will provide multiple entities (state and local) the ability to work collaboratively to gain valuable insights and ultimately enable culturally relevant and impactful nutrition education in Delaware. For more information, please contact Cindy Parr at cparr@pmgconsulting.net.
