Ford Foundation Names Burlington's Vermont Campaign to End Childhood
Hunger 2004 Leadership for a Changing World Award Recipient
18 Recognized
for Outstanding Leadership in U.S. Communities Program challenges
conventional ideas about leadership
New York, N.Y. -- October 11, 2004. The Ford Foundation today announced
that Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger (VTCECH) of Burlington,
Vermont is a 2004 winner of the Leadership for a Changing World awards.
VTCECH is one
of 18 awardees, chosen by
a national selection committee from a pool of nearly
1000 nominations, representing individuals and
leadership
teams tackling some of the nation's most entrenched
social, economic and environmental challenges.
"These awardees, such as VTCECH, are
making a difference in
communities across the country and are showing us
new ways to exercise leadership in challenging
times,"
said Susan V. Berresford, president of the Ford
Foundation. "The LCW program not only recognizes
their accomplishments but also seeks to explore what
constitutes effective leadership today and to share
those insights more broadly."
Each awardee will receive $100,000 to advance their
work and an additional $15,000 for supporting
activities over the next two years. The winners will
also participate in a multi-year collaborative research
initiative exploring how leadership is created and
sustained. A full list of the Leadership for a
Changing World award winners is attached.
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The Award and Research Program
Launched in September 2000, Leadership
for a
Changing World is a program of the Ford
Foundation in partnership with the Advocacy
Institute in Washington, D.C. and the Robert F.
Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New
York University. By 2005 the LCW will have
recognized nearly 100 outstanding leaders and
leadership teams not broadly known beyond their
immediate community or field. LCW provides financial
and other support for their programs and leadership,
and engages them as partners in ongoing research
about leadership.
The Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger
strives to increase the access of low-income children
and families to nutritious food. In recent years,
Robert Dostis, Joanne Heidkamp and VTCECH
procured state funding to expand nutrition programs
in schools and communities. They also work to
improve nutrition policies in Vermont. Act 22,
VCTECH's most recent legislative victory, requires
every public school to offer breakfast and lunch
programs to students living in poverty. Moreover,
VTCECH helps communities establish summer meal
programs, and sponsors educational programs for
both teenagers and adults. Among these, Cooking for
Life, a collaboration with the University of Vermont,
teaches participants how to prepare good meals on
limited budgets. Through its statewide multi-media
campaign and trainings, VTCECH is increasing the use
of the Food Stamps Program by eligible Vermonters.
"In a time when the public is taking a keen interest in
the quality of all leaders, we believe the winners of
the Leadership for a Changing World
award epitomize the best kinds of
leadership," said Kathleen D. Sheekey, President and
CEO of the Advocacy Institute. "These individuals
and groups serve as examples of the richness and
diversity of American leadership. From them, we can
learn about the complexity of successful community
leadership, and take hope."