Promising Practices - New York

New York – The Hunger Action Network of New York State, a recipient of a food stamp outreach grant in FY 2007, found that the biggest challenge in reaching low income Hispanic residents in rural areas of Hudson Valley is a lack of awareness that the Food Stamp Program exists. To overcome this barrier, they designed Food Stamp outreach brochures in Spanish with tear-off tabs containing their outreach hotline number. These were posted on bulletin boards in places frequented by low income families in the area, such as bodegas, libraries and coin-operated laundry facilities. In addition, they partnered with churches, food pantries and Head Start programs to distribute brochures to parishioners and clients. For more information, contact: Veda Myers, Food Stamp Program Outreach Coordinator, Hunger Action Network of New York State, 260 W. 36th Street, Suite 504, New York, New York 10018, 212-741-8192, ext. 2#, vmyers@hungeractionnys.org.

New York – FoodChange developed a one-stop recipe book titled Quick! Delicious! Healthy Recipes on a Budget! demonstrating how Food Stamp Program benefits can help households improve their nutrition with food that is both affordable and healthy. Culturally accessible recipes are accompanied by nutritional composition and estimated cost per serving (based on seasonal produce prices at a local Bronx supermarket). Also included are food stamp eligibility and application guidelines, and information on Medicaid, WIC, Headstart, school meals, and advantages to buying local produce, buying tips, and the value of farmers markets and Community Supported Agriculture shares. Cooking demonstrations and distribution of the book at New York City Pathmark grocery stores complement the success of FoodChange’s pre-screening operations at these sites. For more information, contact: Nicole Christensen, Assistant Director, Food Access at FoodChange, 39 Broadway, 10th Floor, New York, NY 10006, 212-894-8055, nchristensen@foodchange.org.

New York – The Korean Grocers Association in New York City publishes Food Stamp Program information in Korean. For more information, contact Denise Thomas at Denise.Thomas@fns.usda.gov

New York – Erie County Department of Social Services explored the extension of business hours and the placement of eligibility specialists in off-site locations, but found that conducting more interviews by telephone was the best choice for its customers in the county seat of Buffalo and surrounding rural areas where public transportation is inadequate. For more information, contact: Judy Tutuska, Erie County Department of Social Services, 716-858-6839, jtutus@dss1.co.erie.ny.us .

New York – Outreach for the Nutrition Outreach and Education Program (NOEP) is conducted state-wide by a contractor, Nutrition Consortium of New York State, and the Consortium’s 46 subcontractors who implement outreach campaigns at the local level. Consortium staff has a proficient knowledge of FSP regulations, barriers to participation, and effective outreach strategies. The NOEP model combines media outreach to promote a positive perception of the Food Stamp Program with targeted outreach to potentially eligible persons including on-site community work, eligibility pre-screening and application assistance for clients. In 2004, more than 47,600 individuals inquired about the Food Stamp Program, 36,419 households were pre-screened for benefits, and at least 18,228 households applied for and received Food Stamp Program benefits as a direct result of Consortium NOEP subcontractor work. They believe their success is due to the community-based model which uses agencies adept at connecting with low-income households in their service areas and combines the outreach work with pre-screening and application assistance. For more information, contact: E. Yvette James, Executive Director of Outreach/Education, Nutrition Consortium of New York State, 235 Lark Street, Albany, NY 12210, 518-436-8757, extension 15, hungernoep@aol.com.

Last modified: 04/30/2009