The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has announced a new Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Workforce National Strategy. This initiative, backed by over $29 million in funding opportunities, aims to enhance the WIC workforce. The USDA's investment focuses on outreach, innovation, and modernization to meet the needs of eligible families, noting that currently, only about half of those eligible participate in WIC. The primary objectives of this modernization include enrolling all eligible families, retaining them throughout their eligibility period, simplifying shopping to maximize benefit utilization, and ensuring WIC's equity and accessibility for all.
In these modernization efforts, the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) have collaborated to revamp the WIC workforce, addressing challenges such as declining participation and retention; a workforce diversity that mirrors the families served; and the integration of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility principles into WIC operations and workforce development.
A cooperative agreement between FNS, NIFA, and the University of Minnesota Extension has been established to pinpoint evidence-based strategies that will shape a five-year plan to fortify the WIC workforce. Incorporating findings from formative research, they have crafted four broad areas of recommendations and corresponding actionable strategies to effectively support the diverse needs of WIC participants.
The recommendations include the following:
Over the next five years, the implementation of these strategies is expected to fortify WIC, a program adapting to the evolving needs of families. This will bolster the WIC workforce by enhancing their ability to attract and retain top talent. The strategies are designed to extend WIC's reach to eligible yet unenrolled populations and to increase the adoption of nutrition education and breastfeeding support among participants, benefiting mothers, babies, and young children.
In alignment with the WIC Workforce National Strategy, USDA NIFA has announced two new funding opportunities for eligible applicants. The WIC Workforce Development Implementation Projects grant, with approximately $19,365,790 in funds, aims to diversify and increase the cultural competency of the WIC workforce, as well as to overcome recruitment and retention challenges. The projects will create outreach initiatives targeting WIC State and local agencies, Indian Tribal Organizations, territories, Tribal Colleges and Universities, Minority Serving Institutions, and underserved communities.
Additionally, there is a funding opportunity for the WIC Workforce Evaluation and Technical Assistance Center Cooperative Agreement, with around $10 million available to establish a center that will offer technical assistance and oversee the evaluation of projects under the National Strategy.
These initiatives are part of the Biden-Harris Administration's broader National Strategy to integrate nutrition and health, which was unveiled at the historic White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health held in September.