Mission
The mission of CHANA Project is to promote the health and well-being of children and families through better nutrition.
Vision
All children will have access to wholesome and nutritious food, nutrition education and the chance for a healthy future. (Children’s Nutrition Bill of Rights (c)2002-2009 Dorene E. Carter, PhD, RD)
History
CHANA Project was founded in 2002 by Dorene E. Carter, PhD, RD. In 2004 it was incorporated by Dr. Carter, along with two other registered dietitians, Juana Brown, MPH, RD, LDN and Pascale Jean, MPH, RD, LDN. The organization was granted tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(3) corporation by the IRS effective March 2004.
Since 2004, CHANA Project has partnered with more than a dozen after-school and summer programs to provide nutrition education activities to children across Miami-Dade County. Over 2000 children and families have been the beneficiaries of these programs. In 2007, Dr. Carter represented the organization at a summer camp for over 500 children in Haiti, sponsored by COHEF.
CHANA Project has also provided extensive nutrition workshops for parents across Miami-Dade County.
In 2007, CHANA Project was awarded The Children’s Trust Professional Development and Training Grant. Over 40 providers in after-school and summer programs in Miami-Dade County participated in this program. Feedback from trainees demonstrated that they were continuing to conduct nutrition education activities with the children in their centers using the knowledge and training acquired for up to six months after the training. Furthermore, over 85 percent said that they planned to continue to do so beyond this point. More than 600 children benefited as a result of the Professional Development and Training program. The results of our follow-up survey suggested that the training had powerful and sustainable impact.