South Texas Early Prevention Studies SNAP-Ed (STEPS SNAP-Ed)

The "South Texas Early Prevention Studies Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education" (STEPS SNAP-Ed) is a project designed to control and prevent obesity rates in South Texas children. The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was awarded funding from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to provide behaviorally focused, evidence-based nutrition education and obesity prevention interventions to serve the South Texas SNAP-Ed target audience. The SNAP-Ed target audience are SNAP-Ed recipients, SNAP eligible, communities with ≥50% low-income, schools where ≥50% of children are on free and reduced meals, and those on Medicaid. Specifically, the STEPS SNAP-Ed Project will engage parents, school staff, hospital staff and community members to make healthier food choices available and encourage physical activity to control and prevent obesity in preschool children. The STEPS SNAP-Ed Project is a collaborative effort among a university, two school districts, and a hospital system in the Rio Grande Valley.