FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MARYLAND COMMUNITY HEALTH RESOURCES COMMISSION
AWARDS PRINCE GEORGE’S COMMUNITY COLLEGE
COVID-19 EMERGENCY RELIEF GRANT
LARGO, Md. (July 16, 2020) – Prince George’s Community College (PGCC) announced today that it has received a $50,000 COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grant from the Maryland Community Health Resources Commission. Funding will be used to provide a new telehealth/telemonitoring student wellness program focused on diabetes, obesity, and hypertension, and personal protective equipment for PGCC students and community members.
Prince George’s Community College program director for the Wellness Center, Michele Richardson, and the dean of Student Success and Engagement, Dr. Scheherazade Forman, will collaborate to identify and enroll 50 high-risk students who voluntarily choose to participate in the program. Grant funds will provide each participant with a special glucometer, blood pressure machine, or weight scale to use at home, and the devices will send data automatically to a monitoring physician under contract with the College. The physician will provide monthly monitoring of each participant’s data and will provide education, advice, and medication adjustments, as appropriate.
“We are particularly excited about this grant because it will allow PGCC’s Wellness Center to serve students and community members in new ways,” said Anne Shepard, director of Grants and Resource Development. “As always with our grant projects, we keep the fact that we are the community’s college in mind and try to match regional needs with funder priorities – and this grant does just that. When our community does well, our College will do well.”
“We are pleased to support Prince George’s Community College in their efforts to provide access to health care services for its student population as our state perseveres through the impact of COVID,” commented Mark Luckner, executive director, Maryland Community Health Resources Commission. “The Wellness Center is an important resource and the Commission is thrilled to support its delivery of services for students.”
In order to establish sustainability, both for this project and for the new health practices individuals put into place through the monitoring program, participants will agree to complete both a pre-test and a post-test regarding their health-related practices and their particular health conditions. They will also view a webinar related to nutrition and healthy cooking during their participation in the project. Baseline physiologic parameters of each participant will also be measured to assess the effectiveness of and build a case for the project’s sustainability.
Similar programs have shown excellent outcomes, helping to reduce the severity and incidence of illness and severe complicating factors that can result from underlying conditions such as those addressed in the new grant program. Such underlying conditions are a particular concern, as we grapple with COVID-19 and its myriad impacts.
Project takeaways are expected to include better health for participants, a pilot program that can be replicated not only at PGCC, but also at other colleges, and data that PGCC can use to secure funding for this and similar projects after the grant term ends.
About Prince George's Community College
Named a National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance designated by the National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security (2015-2020), Prince George's Community College (PGCC) provides high-quality education and training for the progressive and career-oriented residents of Prince George's County. From new high school graduates and career seekers to more seasoned professionals and senior citizens looking to enhance their skillsets, PGCC is comprised of students who represent a wide range of ages, backgrounds, and goals. Serving nearly 40,000 individuals annually, the College is the first choice for higher education for residents of Prince George's County. Collaborative partnerships, responsive degree and training programs, and a commitment to student success enables PGCC to address diverse education and workforce development demands. For more information, visit the college website at www.pgcc.edu. Prince George's Community College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104; (267-284-5000); www.msche.org. The Middle States Commission on Higher Education is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the US Secretary of Education and the Council on Higher Education Accreditation.
About the Maryland Community Health Resources Commission
The Maryland Community Health Resources Commission was created in 2005 by the Maryland General Assembly to expand access to health care services in underserved communities. The Commission has supported programs in every jurisdiction of Maryland and CHRC-supported programs have collectively served more than 488,000 Marylanders.
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