Children’s Health

Working to improve children’s health, safety and well-being.

 

Children are the driving force for a healthier Kentucky.

Healthy Kentucky works to improve the physical, social and emotional health of our next generation through partnerships and engaging communities with innovative strategies to build healthier and more equitable places where children can attain their optimal health and well-being.

 
 

  • What we do:

    • Through our position as backbone organization of the Kentucky Coalition for Healthy Children, we advocate for statewide policies to improve access to healthy foods for kids and increase opportunities for physical activity.

    • Support the expansion of food access programs like Kentucky Double Dollars and Fresh RX for Moms and coordinate with other statewide initiatives.

    • Fund targeted strategies to improve physical activity and nutrition in schools.

    • Raise awareness of the connection between type-2 diabetes, obesity, and community interventions.  

  • What we do:

    • Through our position as backbone organization of the Kentucky Coalition for Healthy Children, we advocate for statewide policies that improve and protect children’s mental health.

    • Through both pass-through grants and direct funding, we fund and collaborate on community interventions to increase the awareness and skills of adults interacting with children to foster resilience and address Adverse Childhood Experiences.

    • Engage in various coalitions and committees that work to improve youth mental health in Kentucky.

  • What we do:

    • Through our partnerships and advocacy, we promote the passage and implementation of statewide and local policies that reduce nicotine use among kids and teens and prevent initiation. Policy strategies include smoke-free communities and tobacco-retail licensure.

    • Engage in various coalitions and committees that work to reduce child and youth tobacco use and vaping in Kentucky.

  • What we do:

    • Through our position as backbone organization of the Kentucky Coalition for Healthy Children, we advocate for statewide policies and programs that address systemic racism and disparities, and promote increased diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice.

    • Develop and support initiatives to improve the available data and evidence around disparities and inequities in children’s health. One example of this includes our 2024-2025 survey of caregivers in the state.

    • Engage in coalitions and partnerships to cultivate strong, statewide collaboration around reducing health disparities for children in Kentucky.

 
 

Our collaborations to achieve the above goals include:

Kentucky Coalition for Healthy Children (KCHC)

  • The Kentucky Coalition for Healthy Children is a space for a diverse group of organizations to share expertise and information, identify and promote policy priorities, best practices and programs, organize campaigns, and mobilize advocacy efforts.

  • The Coalition has developed policy priorities using the comprehensive Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child approach and embraces the objectives for children’s health in the Healthy People 2030 initiative.

  • Healthy Kentucky serves as the backbone organization and chair of KCHC.

  • Visit the Kentucky Coalition for Healthy Children’s website to learn more.

Bloom Kentucky

  • Bloom Kentucky is an initiative supported by some three-dozen grant-making organizations across the commonwealth who are all investing in preventing and mitigating Adverse Childhood Experiences.

  • The initiative is focused on statewide policy change to prevent and mitigate ACEs.

  • Visit the Bloom Kentucky website to learn more.

Partnership for a Resilient Kentucky (PaRK)

Prichard Committee Equity Coalition

Community Farm Alliance Healthy Communities

  • Healthy Kentucky supports Kentucky Double Dollars and Fresh RX for Moms programs.

Farm to School Network

Kentucky Food Action Network

Shaping our Appalachian Region (SOAR)