Illinois

Illinois, nicknamed "the Prairie State," is known today for much more than its prairies. The Midwestern state is made up of farmland, forests, rolling hills and wetlands. Its northeast corner borders Lake Michigan and is home to the third largest city in the country: Chicago.

Despite all that Illinois has to offer its residents of all ages, a startling one-third of Illinois children are overweight or obese, putting them at risk for serious health problems.

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, thanks to support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is working with communities throughout the state to make it easier for kids to lead healthier lives.

Our Work in Illinois

In Illinois, we’re making it easier for kids to develop healthy habits.

Over 1,200 schools serving more than 672,000 students across the state have joined Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program, creating healthier school environments for children to thrive. Since 2007, 54 Illinois schools have been recognized with National Healthy Schools Awards for their outstanding efforts.

We’ve also made it easier for more than 14,000 youth in 96 out-of-school time programs to eat right and move more through our Healthy Out-of-School Time Initiative.

Success Stories

Hear from our school champions from just two the many districts we work with in Illinois: Evergreen Park Elementary School District 124, enrolled with the Healthy Schools Program since 2008; and Namaste Charter School, enrolled since 2011.

One thing that’s very exciting about the Healthy Schools Program is the team approach. We had our food service director, teachers, nurse – they are all involved. It’s a team effort.

Kimberly Norton

Principal, Northeast Elementary School

Healthier Generation really helped us define healthy. We used a lot of resources like the Product Calculator for Smart Snacks that helped us create a common definition for our community of what being healthy meant.

Allison Slade

Founder and Executive Director, Namaste Charter School