• Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Custom
Spotlight on school-based health centersSpotlight on school-based health centersSpotlight on school-based health centersSpotlight on school-based health centers
  • Our Focus
  • Our Process
  • Who We Are
Close Search Box
Search
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Health
  • Spotlight on school-based health centers
May 9, 2014
Teen at doctor visit

Spotlight on school-based health centers

Chicago’s students frequently go without medical treatment due to challenges their families face in securing comprehensive health care. Language barriers, lack of insurance, transportation issues, precarious housing and employment situations, and the intricacies of navigating a complex healthcare system are among the many obstacles that can stand between a student and connection to a medical home.

To ensure that Chicago public school students could gain access to comprehensive care, without concern for the student’s ability to pay, Polk Bros. Foundation launched a special initiative to support school-based health centers in the mid-1990s. In this model, a medical provider, usually a Federally Qualified Health Center or hospital, partners with a school to provide on-site, confidential, culturally competent, and high-quality care to the students. Students are able to access primary care, mental health services and counseling, family outreach, chronic illness management and often dental and vision care at the very location where they spend most of their day: school.

In 1999, the Foundation expanded the initiative by supporting four new partnerships, bolstered by CPS investment. The Illinois Coalition of School Health Centers provided technical assistance, and the Foundation convened grantees periodically to share advice and best practices.

During 2000-2006, the Foundation granted $1.6 million through its School-Based Health Center Initiative, supporting six health centers that served nearly 4,000 students across the city. At the conclusion of the initiative, funding of school-based health centers was integrated and expanded into the Foundation’s regular grantmaking, which granted $635,000 in 2014 to six medical providers staffing 13 school-based health centers. These health centers serve nearly 7,000 Chicago public school students, providing them a friendly place to get a flu shot, have an annual physical, speak to a mental health counselor, or get assistance with managing a chronic illness.

Learn more about our focus on health. 

Share

Related posts

Equitable Recovery Blog Header
March 22, 2021

Our second round of increased FY21 grantmaking ($2.155MM) invests in how Chicagoans are shaping our city’s future


Read more
Belmont Cragin Mass Vax Site
March 22, 2021

Chicagoland’s Vaccine Corps Partnership formed to help counter distrust of COVID-19 vaccines


Read more
Equitable Recovery Blog Header
November 23, 2020

Announcing the first $2.05 million of our increased FY21 grantmaking for Chicago’s equitable recovery


Read more

Search

Close Search Box

Categories

  • Arts Access and Learning
  • Education
  • Enhanced Capacity
  • Featured News
  • Health
  • News
  • Strategic Collaborations
  • Strong Communities
  • Strong Families
  • Uncategorized

About Polk Bros. Foundation

Polk Bros. Foundation is a private independent foundation dedicated to building and strengthening Chicago's families and communities, especially those most affected by poverty. The Foundation focuses its work at the intersection of Chicago's most pressing issues to address the complex roots and devastating effects of poverty, challenge inequity, and ensure that all Chicagoans have the opportunity to reach their full potential. Learn more.

Media Contact

Tracy Kremer
tkremer@polkbrosfdn.org
312.445.2659

Newsletter

Archived Issues

Latest posts

  • Equitable Recovery Blog Header0
    Our second round of increased FY21 grantmaking ($2.155MM) invests in how Chicagoans are shaping our city’s future
    March 22, 2021
  • Belmont Cragin Mass Vax Site0
    Chicagoland’s Vaccine Corps Partnership formed to help counter distrust of COVID-19 vaccines
    March 22, 2021

Follow Us on Twitter

Polk Bros. Fdn
Polk Bros. Fdn @PolkBrosFdn
3 days ago
OPPORTUNITY | Complete an LOI for Chicago’s Cultural Treasures by 11pm on 4/13. This effort (one of our #EquitableRecovery grants) will fund orgs focused on art from BIPOC traditions, leadership & culture in Chicago.

https://t.co/nW18YC6UPj
View on Twitter
0
0
Polk Bros. Fdn
Polk Bros. Fdn @PolkBrosFdn
2 weeks ago
"The public health community has been thinking seriously about the concept of trust since before the first vaccine was even approved for distribution," writes @PolkBrosFdn's Divya Mohan Little.

Read about a partnership that is giving Divya hope.
https://t.co/WDPnz5CPZG
View on Twitter
0
1
Polk Bros Foundation Logo

Polk Bros. Foundation
20 West Kinzie Street, Suite 1110
Chicago, IL 60654-5815
312.527.4684 │ info@polkbrosfdn.org

Quick Links

  • Grants Portal
  • Grantmaking Guidelines
  • Financial Statements
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Newsletter

Stay Connected

© 2018 Polk Bros. Foundation | All Rights Reserved | Site Map
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Custom