Arkansas Rural Health Push: Extension Service Wins $2.65 Million ROOT Grant Within $54.6 Million State Award Round
LITTLE ROCK — The University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service has received a $2.65 million grant from the federal Rural Health Transformation Program for a project called ROOT of Rural Health — ROOT stands for Rural Outreach, Opportunity, and Transformation. The program spans childhood wellness, chronic disease and health literacy, and is expected to reach 30,000 to 50,000 rural residents annually, engage more than 300 partners and deliver over 2,000 health-promotion activities.
The grant is part of $54.6 million in second-round Rural Health Transformation Program awards announced by Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders at a Sept. 24 ceremony at the Governor's Mansion. Arkansas has received $208 million from the federal program this year. State Health Secretary Renee Mallory said the awards back scalable, homegrown strategies to improve nutrition, increase physical activity and reduce chronic disease.
Extension agents are present in all 75 Arkansas counties, backed by more than a century of work in rural communities. Assistant professor Jessica Vincent said local residents will help shape the work so ROOT reflects local strengths and priorities rather than outside ideas alone.
Source:University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture (via The Arkadelphian)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 阿肯色州议会大厦（小石城），CC BY-SA 4.0，摄影：Daniel Schwen（Wikimedia Commons）
