The Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment has awarded $9.9 million in grants to 40 new projects aiming to improve health in Wisconsin, the
Medical College of Wisconsin announced Thursday.
The AHW grants, which are up to $250,000 each, target Wisconsin’s urgent health concerns. Of the 40 projects receiving these grants, 22 are led by community-based organizations while the other 18 are research-based projects led by MCW faculty, according to the MCW news release.
The grants to community organizations total nearly $5.5 million and will focus on a variety of initiatives. According to the news release, these projects will work on “building and sustaining the state’s health workforce, improving access to healthy food, combating substance use disorders, addressing mental health challenges, and providing integrated care to vulnerable populations.”
According to the news release, 11 urban counties and 16 rural counties are represented in the efforts of community-based projects.
The other $4.4 million in grants are directed toward MCW research projects about “curtailing opioid addiction, optimizing HIV and syphilis screening rates, increasing CPR training, and improving care for cancer and brain injury patients,” according to the news release.
These projects are to be completed within two years beginning in July 2024, according to the news release.
The MCW Board of Trustees, MCW Consortium on Public and Community Health and AHW Research and Education Advisory Committee approved the grant applications.
The MCW established the AHW, which is the largest health improvement philanthropy in Wisconsin and has granted $350 million since 2004, according to the news release.
“In our 20th year of grant-making, AHW continues to propel the most promising work and ideas to advance the health of all Wisconsinites,” AHW director
Jesse Ehrenfeld said in the news release. “These 40 projects totaling nearly $10 million reflect our commitment to investing the funds entrusted to us to improve lives throughout the state.”
