Austintown schools’ clinic gets $500K

July 15, 2011 at 12:04a.m.

AUSTINTOWN

Austintown schools are getting $500,000 for health-care services.

The Austintown Local Board of Education is one of 278 school-based health-center programs across the country that will receive from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services a total of $95 million from the Affordable Care Act.

The money is to help clinics expand and provide more health-care services at schools.

“We’re still shocked,” said Superintendent Vince Colaluca about the grant.

He said the money would be used to implement a mobile unit and reach out to the community.

Barb Kliner, former district treasurer who helped secure the grant, said the school district is working to develop partnerships with local hospitals and would look to obtain a mobile vehicle that would house two exam rooms with X-ray capabilities and state-of-the-art medical equipment. The mobile unit could be used at home athletic games, she said.

The Affordable Care Act has budgeted $200 million for 2010 through 2013 for the School-Based Health Center Capital Program. The program is overseen by the Health Resources and Services Administration.

“We know that if kids aren’t healthy, then kids can’t learn,” Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said in a news release. “These grants will make it a lot easier for working moms and dads to help get their children the health care they need and deserve. This unprecedented investment in school-based health care will bring communities closer together and help children succeed in the classroom.”