Iowa Newspaper Foundation and Wellmark offer HealthyNewz4U wellness program

As the state’s education community is faced with tighter budgets and decreased levels of funding, the Iowa Newspaper Foundation wants to help INA members provide exceptional educational resources to educators. Through its Newspaper in Education program, INF offers INA members free curriculum materials to help teachers use newspapers as a more current, relevant and personal source of information than the average textbook. 

In 2009, the Iowa Newspaper Foundation and Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield created the HealthyNewz4U program, offering health and wellness educational resources to Iowa middle school educators and students, showcasing different health themes bi-monthly throughout the school year. This program provides an excellent opportunity for newspapers to show their commitment to a healthy community in addition to promoting literacy and using the newspaper as a virtual textbook.

The comprehensive program aims to help Iowa families live healthier lives. Through the support of Wellmark, the INF supplies free, printed classroom copies of the material to all teachers and students. The curriculum is designed for students in grades 6-8, though educators may be able to use it for adjacent grade levels.

Interested newspapers and educators can find an order form for materials at www.HealthyNewz4U.com.

As part of this free program, the INF requests that a participating newspaper publish promotional advertisements letting the community know that the newspaper is supplying educators and students with the materials. Don’t miss this opportunity to share excellent health and wellness resources with your community. For more information on HealthyNewz4U contact Jana Shepherd at the Iowa Newspaper Foundation at 515-422-9051 or jshepherd@inanews.com.