PROVIDENCE CHILDREN AND YOUTH CABINET AWARDED COLLECTIVE

IMPACT GRANT FROM RHODE ISLAND DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH

Will Implement Evidence-Based Programs Identified as Top Priorities by Providence
Residents
Contact:
Rebecca Boxx
Director, Providence Children and Youth Cabinet
office: (401) 863-5440; cell: (401) 662-1637
rebecca_boxx@brown.edu
PROVIDENCE The Providence Children and Youth Cabinet (CYC) has been awarded a
sizeable grant from the Rhode Island Department of Health to coordinate the delivery of
resident-identified, evidence-based programs that battle the root causes of chronic absence from
school, anxiety, depression, and delinquency in Providences children and youth living in the
West End and Southside neighborhoods. The grant has the potential to bring more than $1
million in funding to these efforts over the next four years.
The award will support the Evidence2Success initiative, a national pilot led locally by the CYC.
The Evidence2Success framework helps community and public system leaders invest public
dollars in evidence-based programs that address desired outcomes for children and is a joint
effort with the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
This grant is a great vote of confidence in the progress Providence neighborhoods and the CYC
have made in using data to develop a joint vision for children, and in putting proven programs to
work that can achieve that vision, said Suzanne Barnard director of the Evidence-Based Practice
Group at the Casey Foundation.
While these prevention programs address multiple risk factors facing children in the city, the
funding of a proven approach to reduce the high rates of chronic absence while improving school
climate was a top priority for residents, students, and the Providence Public School District
(PPSD). The CYC will serve as the backbone to the initiative, coordinating the collaborative
effort among six local organizations, including PPSD.
The CYC aims to achieve Collective Impact, a strategy in which a broad cross-sector coalition
works together to effect large-scale social change in this case working toward the goal of

cradle-to-career success for all of Providences children and youth. The CYC has been a
fundamental leader in the Collective Impact work taking place in Providence.
The CYCs funding is part of a $2.15-million grant from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) to the Rhode Island Department of Health.
We share the Health Departments eagerness to tackle some of the most persistent problems
faced by our children with this collaborative, evidence-based, and community-driven initiative,
said Rebecca Boxx, director of the Providence CYC. In particular this grant recognizes that
chronic absenteeism is not just a school issue; it is also a community health issue. Children who
experience health issues such as asthma, hunger, and depression are more likely to miss school.
And because absenteeism is closely linked to low academic performance and high drop-out rates,
a coordinated, system-wide effort that addresses its multiple causes is an absolute priority for our
city. This grant is a huge win for every member of the CYC and their unwavering commitment to
the coalition and Collective Impact.
--------About the CYC
The CYC is a cross-sector coalition of 150 members and 60 children- and youth-serving
organizations that is designed to ensure that all children and youth in the City of Providence,
from cradle to career, will have access to a coordinated, collaborative, integrated system of
educational, social, physical, and behavioral health services. The Annenberg Institute for School
Reform at Brown University is the anchor institution and home of the Children and Youth
Cabinet.
Visit us at www.cycprovidence.org
Follow us on Twitter: @cycprovidence