A $1,000 grant from the Rotary Club of Greater Flint Sunrise can go a long way in helping students and families in Flint get access to needed resources.
The recent award to the Genesee Health Plan’s “Riding Above Barriers” programs will provide MTA bus passes and Your Ride vouchers to families within the Flint Community School District.
The program will help reduce transportation barriers and improve access to community and school resources, according to Shannon Ciszek, GHP communications coordinator.
“We are deeply grateful to the Rotary Club of Greater Flint Sunrise for awarding us this grant that will help students and their families access transportation for school and school-related activities,” said Jim Milanowski, GHP president and CEO.
He said it is hoped the grant will help decrease student absences, improve parent involvement with school activities, keep students in school and improve access to critical school and community services.
The transportation grant connects with other recent GHP initiatives, Ciszek said.
In 2015, GHP partnered with the Crim Fitness Foundation to launch the Community Education Initiative in the Flint Community Schools to provide Community Health Workers in each Flint school. They help identify barriers students, their families or community members experience in accessing care or resources.
Since the initiative began, Ciszek said, transportation has been identified as one of the top barriers causing student absences. The need for greater community access to transportation services inspired the “Riding Above Barriers” program.
More information is available at geneseehealthplan.org or at 844-232-7740.
As described on its website, Genesee Health Plan is a nonprofit health care organization launched in 2001 to provide health care coverage to uninsured residents of Genesee County. Since its inception, GHP has provided more than 90,000 county residents with doctor visits, cancer screenings, prescription drugs, x-rays and many more life-saving services.
–EVM Staff
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