Scholarships and grants

• The March of Dimes awards community-based program grants.
• Scholarships are available for graduate perinatal nurses.
• The Agnes Higgins Award spotlights maternal-fetal nutrition.

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The March of Dimes funds maternal-child health program grants in collaboration with our local chapters. External organizations can apply for funding to support programs working to improve the health of mothers and babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. Priority is given to projects that, based on community needs, address increased access to health care or prevention services to help reduce disparities in preterm birth.

Annually, March of Dimes chapters provide over $8 million to support program grants. Top funded categories include enhanced prenatal care, outreach programs, preterm labor prevention and smoking cessation. Grants range generally from one to three years and from $10,000 to $25,000. To find out more about program grants, contact your local chapter.

Funding priorities
All grant proposals must address the March of Dimes mission of improving the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. Priority will be given to projects that, based on community needs, address increased access to health care and/or prevention services to help reduce disparities in preterm birth. Project interventions may be provider- and/or consumer-focused.

For women of childbearing age: Availability and quality of health care/prevention services

• Increasing risk-reduction education and/or services (excluding billable services). This may include women at high risk due to previous adverse pregnancy outcomes, chronic conditions, or other risk factors in which preconception, interconception, or prenatal care could help prevent adverse outcomes. For a list of specific risk areas, visit Preconception Risk Reduction.

• Increasing education and services (excluding billable services) for urinary and reproductive tract infections identified before or during pregnancy. This may include sexually transmitted infections.

For pregnant women: Availability and quality of health care/prevention services

• Increasing participation in state or local maternal child health programs (e.g., Medicaid SCHIP, WIC) through enhanced outreach, education and public awareness.
• Enhancing education and support services that focus on reducing disparities in birth outcomes. This may include March of Dimes programs such as Stork's Nest and Comenzando bien. For information on these March of Dimes programs, contact your local chapter.
• Enhancing care through the CenteringPregnancy model of group prenatal care and/or providing training to providers who plan on utilizing CenteringPregnancy.
• Increasing smoking cessation services. Preference will be given to prenatal health education and information/referral services that utilize the "5 A's" counseling approach. For information on the approach, visit the website of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
• Increasing health education and information/referral services available to pregnant women who use alcohol or other drugs.
• Increasing professional education about 17P (17-alpha-hydroxyprogesterone caproate) treatment for women who have had a previous singleton preterm birth.

Availability of genetics services and folic acid education

• Enhancing the availability, quality and utilization of genetics services and/or other patient services related to preventable birth defects.
• Increasing folic acid education and use of multivitamins among women of childbearing age.

SIDS education

• Increasing education related to reducing the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in high-risk communities, consistent with the 2005 American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines.
  
  

March 2007