1. Building Capacity for Health Improvement in Rural Grundy County, TN
Emily Partin, LPC
Grundy County Health Council

2. Grundy County, Tennessee is located on the Southernmost part of the Cumberland Plateau as it intersects the state.

3. Signs of stress in Grundy?
Median Household Income: $26,856 ($44,621 TN; $53,482 US)
71.1% High School or greater 9.7% Bachelor’s degree or higher (compared to 24.4% in TN and 29.3% in the US)
Tracy City Elementary (pre-K-8th):
89% economically disadvantaged
76.2% of 3-8th grade TCE students are reading below grade level; 51.6% in TN
Economic performance is among the bottom 10% of all counties in the US
School system is the largest employer
No dentist in the county, one optometrist, and 3 primary care providers as well as a FQHC
Still don’t have reference for median income or picture. Don’t know where the last 3 bullets came from.
United States Census Bureau. (2014). Educational attainment: American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Retrieved from
Tennessee Department of Education. (2014). State Report Card. Retrieved from

4. AmeriCorps VISTA Founded in 1965 Became part of AmeriCorps in 1993
Focused on combating poverty
VISTAs have one year, full-time positions at non- profits or public agencies
Capacity building as opposed to direct service
Info taken from

5. Partnership between the South Cumberland Community Fund (SCCF) and Sewanee: The University of the South’s Office of Civic Engagement
The SCCF endorses the idea that “one of the best ways to strengthen a community is by strengthening the nonprofit organizations in its area.”
“and supported with diabetes dollars” ???
Quotation from:

6. Grundy is in its 3rd year of original VISTA Assignment Descriptions (VADs)
The goal of the Grundy County Health Council Vista project is to expand/strengthen the Council’s ability to partner with local health care social service agencies, and churches to develop a community-wide health information, education network as a means of improving the health of Grundy County’s low income individuals and families.

8. Year 1 focus:
Develop a comprehensive Community Resource Manual, including all local churches
Identified over 100 Churches, listing address and contact person
Work with afterschool fitness programs and community wide health related programs
Research, develop, and implement programs for tobacco prevention and cessation in the schools
Act as mentors for the University students placed in afterschool programs
Promote sustainability

9. Year 2 Cohort

10. Year 2 focus:
Exploring the possibility of the Health Council becoming a 501(c)3
implementing our new Health Ambassador Program
Develop best practice guidelines for school and community gardens and plan curriculum
Develop best practice guidelines for afterschool physical fitness program and plan curriculum
Manage content for website and social media
Promote sustainability

11. Year 3 Cohort

12. Year 3 focus
Continue to explore 501(c)3 possibility and extend/expand Health Ambassador Program
Expand Run Clubs into more elementary schools (grant with Mountain Goat Trail Alliance)
Support school gardens
Promote sustainability

15. The GCHC VISTA program was made possible only because of the generous diabetes grant received in 2012.
Thank YOU!!