PHILADELPHIA (October 25, 2023) – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz visited the KenCrest North Daycare Center in North Philadelphia today in honor of Children’s Health Month. While there, he visited with students to read “Why is Coco Orange?”, a story of a chameleon with asthma and discussed the importance of keeping children safe with staff and parents.
The visit was scheduled to celebrate a nearly $200,000 Healthy Learning Environments Grant issued to Women for a Healthy Environment (WHE). Funded by the American Rescue Plan, this 2-year award provides capacity building support to educate Philadelphia’s early learning community about environmental hazards in childcare centers and provide action steps to mitigate hazards, including addressing concerns associated with climate change and Covid-19.
"Visiting schools and daycare centers like KenCrest are great reminders of the impact our grants have and that each dollar has the power to improve lives and communities," said Ortiz. "Children are one of our most important populations and ensuring they have safe places to live, learn, and play is a top priority for EPA."
“Women for a Healthy Environment (WHE) educates the early learning community about environmental risks to human health, provides action steps providers can take to mitigate those risks and advocates for solutions that better protect young children and staff,” said Healthy Buildings Program Manager Lorna Rosenberg. “We serve parents, students/children, school and early learning personnel, health, and community-based organizations, through our Healthy Childcare Champions program, with an emphasis on those living in underserved communities. “
Women for a Healthy Environment utilizes the Children’s Environmental Health Network’s Eco-Healthy Checklist in childcares in Philadelphia neighborhoods, like they did at KenCrest North Childcare Center. Select childcares, including KenCrest North, are also participating in an indoor air quality study that utilizes indoor air monitors, observed by Women for a Healthy Environment in real-time. The results from this study will be announced at a later date.
“We’ve learned through numerous studies that there is a significant correlation between air quality, city living, and asthma, and its impact on a child’s ability to thrive in an educational setting. We’re grateful to the EPA and WHE for their continued investment in creating safe and healthy environments for all children to learn, play, and grow,” said KenCrest Executive Director Melanie Brennan.
To learn more about Children’s Health Month, visit: https://www.epa.gov/children
About Women for a Healthy Environment
Women for a Healthy Environment (WHE) educates communities about environmental risks to human health, provides action steps to mitigate those risks, and advocates for solutions to better protect the region. WHE serves parents, students, children, school, and early learning personnel, as well as health and community-based organizations, with an emphasis on those living in underserved communities. Creating healthy spaces for children to live, learn and play is at the core of our work. For more info: https://womenforahealthyenvironment.org/.
About KenCrest
KenCrest is an early education provider in Philadelphia, and a human services organization for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities throughout Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Connecticut; that supports over 12,500 people per year with a dedicated staff of 2,100 employees. For more information, visit www.KenCrest.org.