The Health Foundation for Western and Central New York announced Tuesday that it is expanding its CHOMPERS! Cavity Free Kids initiative into new locations in western and central New York this fall. The Cavity Free Kids program is part of the Health Foundation’s efforts to bring dental education, prevention and treatment to places young children already go in order to help them develop lifelong healthy dental habits and better oral health.
The Cavity Free Kids curriculum, developed by the Washington Dental Service Foundation, provides easy-to-use materials and activities that teachers in early childhood programs, including Head Start and University Pre-K, can use with their students. Now in its fourth year, the Cavity Free Kids program has already reached 7,465 children with six original “hubs” that collectively trained 622 teachers in 397 classrooms. To learn more about the Cavity Free Kids curriculum, click here.(link to Cavity Free Kids)
In this expansion, the Health Foundation awarded up to $20,000 to each new organization that can reach counties that do not currently have a Cavity Free Kids hub or serve counties that already have a hub, but have an unmet demand for the Cavity Free Kids program. The Health Foundation awarded grants to Child Development Council, which will reach Cortland and Tompkins counties; Child Care Solutions, which covers Cayuga and Onondaga counties; and Community Action of Orleans & Genesee for Orleans and Genesee counties.
The six original hubs that will train new sites include: ACCORD Corporation, Cattaraugus and Wyoming County Project Head Start, Holy Cross Head Start, Mohawk Valley Perinatal Network, Orleans Community Health and P.E.A.C.E. Inc.
