KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The University of Kansas Medical Center will receive a $9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services over the next five years.
The grant, which will be administered through the Department of Pediatrics, is courtesy of the Center for Mental Health Services in the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services. Staff hopes to use the funds for KanAWARE, a project aimed at remedying student behavioral issues in Southeast Kansas.
Eve-Lynn Nelson, principal investigator for KanAWARE, said the grant will alleviate a major issue facing children.
“We have never faced a time of greater student behavioral health needs, matched with community innovation to meet these needs,” she said.
KanAWARE focuses on rural school communities with health disparities, which KU Medical Center officials said only worsened after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The project is a collaboration between KU Medical Center, Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services, Kansas State Department of Education, Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas and several other organizations.
—
