WIC Weekly Update

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March 6, 2024 

IMPORTANT

Reminder: WIC staff salary and workforce survey

The Minnesota WIC Program and Local Agency Staffing workgroup are conducting a survey to better understand the challenges of recruiting and retaining WIC staff. Your responses will help us identify the impact that issues like adequate compensation, benefits, and job satisfaction have on staff recruitment and retention. The results may help local agency administrators advocate for fair compensation for WIC staff and enable the Minnesota WIC Program to elevate the importance of local agency staff and support national efforts.

To access the survey, please refer to the Weekly Update email you received on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, or ask your WIC coordinator for the survey link.

The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete. All WIC staff are asked to complete the survey, including WIC Coordinators, CPAs, clerks, Peer Breastfeeding Support staff, and Supervisors.  Coordinators, please forward the survey link to any staff who may not receive the Weekly Update.

Results are confidential and will not be reported by individual or by local agency. We appreciate your participation in this survey.  Survey will close on March 22, 2024. Aggregate results will be available to local agencies in early summer.

National WIC Association (NWA) recipe books – action needed

The 50^th anniversary WIC cookbooks have now shipped to agencies. 

Please complete the NWA Recipe Book survey to confirm your receipt and if any were damaged in shipping.

Please reach out to your State WIC Consultant with any comments or questions. 

IN THIS ISSUE

• Stay in the know
• Nutrition and breastfeeding
• 50 years of WIC
• Training opportunities
• State and local agency career corner
• RESOURCES

Stay in the know

WIC promotion and outreach grant application – due April 12.

Local WIC agencies can apply for outreach project funding.

Local agencies are uniquely positioned to understand the needs of the community and where outreach opportunities exist. Funding of up to $3,000 is available to local WIC agencies to promote WIC services for program recruitment and retention through outreach projects across the state of Minnesota. We will select as many projects as possible up to $25,000.

Funding is pending and dependent on the federal budget. Applicants will be updated on any funding changes before projects start.

Important Dates:

• Applications due April 12, 2024.
• Funds must be spent by Sept. 30, 2024.

For more information, including how to apply, refer to the WIC promotion and outreach grants section under Additional Funding for Local WIC Agencies.

Vaccine resources One of the best things families can do to safeguard themselves and children is to keep up to date with recommended vaccines.   We have added the following vaccine resources on our Additional Support for Families webpage. Immunization: Me and My Family  Pregnancy and Vaccination Vaccines for Infants, Children, and Adolescents Vaccines for Adults Free or Low-Cost Shots for Children

Nutrition and breastfeeding

Infant cereal: topic of the month

Infant cereal is one of the foods most commonly introduced when an infant has shown signs of readiness for solids. Because infant cereal is an excellent source of iron and zinc, it is an ideal choice to support the developmental needs of the growing infant.

Refer to Infant Cereal: Topic of the Month for more information on how to explore the benefits of infant cereals, when to introduce it, why not to put it in the bottle, and what to do with extra cereal as the older infant transitions to table foods.

50 years of WIC

We're celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program. Since the opening of the first clinic in 1974, WIC has been committed to improving maternal and child outcomes.   The March WIC 50th Anniversary Partner Toolkit is ready and includes a video The Impact of Nutrition Education in WIC , social media graphics, and sample social media post language.  Check out the Celebrating 50 years of WIC webpage for additional resources.

Training opportunities

Local agency staff should talk to their supervisor for approval before registering for training.

The Week Ahead

Check out upcoming trainings and meetings: Local Agency WIC Calendar

State and local agency career corner

Find new job opportunities on the WIC Job Postings webpage. 

Submit job postings using the WIC Job Postings survey.

RESOURCES

WIC Agency Materials Order Form

Medical Formulas Available at Local Agencies

WIC New Staff Training

WIC Information System Training

WIC Weekly Updates (View current and past information by date or topic.)

Local Agency Photo Sharing

Reminder: Local agencies should use WIC grant funds to pay for NWA membership and claim the expense on their monthly claim form/invoice. Log in or set up your account at National WIC Association to access resources and materials. Contact Emily Gilcher at egilcher@nwica.org if you need additional information about setting up your NWA account.

Questions? Email health.wic@state.mn.us.

Feedback? Submit Question and Feedback for the Minnesota WIC Program using the online form. Select Local Agency, followed by the WIC Update topic.

Need to add staff to the WIC Weekly Update distribution list? Subscribe to Minnesota WIC Updates.

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