Pointing Toward Good Nutrition

BBVA Compass Sponsors MHRC Program Aimed at Kids’ Health

BBVA Compass representatives Joye Hehn (left) and Lee Smith with little chefs learning good nutrition at Glen Iris Elementary School in Birmingham.

BBVA Compass is leading children in Alabama toward a healthier lifestyle. By sponsoring the UAB Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Center (MHRC) Healthy Happy Kids program for Hispanic children through a $30,000 gift, BBVA Compass is helping the MHRC improve the health of underserved children across the state.

A ceremony was held on March 1 at Glen Iris Elementary School to mark the conclusion of the pilot program’s first year. “The program has been very successful, and the kids are learning and having fun,” says Mona Fouad, M.D., director of the MHRC. “We are very grateful to BBVA Compass for helping us reach out to these children to ensure better health for their future and the generations that follow.”

MHRC Community Advisory Board   member Andria Hurst joins in the fun   and learning with participating   children.

Healthy Happy Kids is a free, six-session curriculum targeting underserved elementary-school children attending after-school programs in inner-city schools in Alabama. The mission of the program is to stop the increase in prevalence and reduce the incidence of childhood obesity in Alabama by educating children and their parents to pursue healthy eating and active lifestyles.

Maintaining the Momentum / Summer 2010