Healthy Community Initiative

Rice County Ready for Kindergarten Coalition develops collaborative initiatives in support of children being ready for kindergarten.

The Coalition’s mission is to:

• Intentionally focus on equity
• Close achievement gaps
• Align strategies across entities
• Work collaboratively to achieve greater results for Rice County’s youngest residents

Healthy Community Initiative convenes the Coalition quarterly to review data, align strategies, and collaborate on shared grants. Coalition representation is from public health, social services, community resource centers, schools, childcare centers, hospitals, clinics, nonprofits, foundations, and more. HCI’s Growing Up Healthy team engages parents and caregivers in workgroup conversations and then brings those voices and ideas to Coalition meetings.

Rice County Ready for Kindergarten Coalition is a Northfield Promise initiative that has expanded countywide.