Food Insecurity in the Rural South in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Food insecurity in rural communities in the Southern US continues to grow, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding the characteristics of food-insecure individuals and families in this region is critical for developing creative strategies for eliminating this health disparity issue. A food insecurity survey was given to attendees at food-security events held in several counties in one Southern US state. A descriptive analysis of food insecurity in this region is presented, and recommendations for addressing food insecurity among underserved and disadvantaged populations are suggested.

Rural Community Engagement for Health Disparities Research: The Unique Role of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

Reducing health disparities in rural communities of color remains a national concern. Efforts to reduce health disparities often center on community engagement, which is historically the strategy used to provide rural minority populations with support to access and utilize health information and services. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), with their origins derived from social injustices and discrimination, are uniquely positioned to conduct this type of engagement. We present the "Research with Care" project, a long-standing positive working relationship between North Carolina Central University (NCCU) and rural Halifax County, North Carolina, demonstrating an effective campus-community partnership. The importance of readiness to implement Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR) principles is underscored. As demonstrated by the NCCU-Halifax partnership, we recommend leveraging the positive associations of the HBCU brand identity as a method of building and sustaining meaningful relationships with rural Black communities. This underscores the role and value of HBCUs in the health disparities research arena and should be communicated and embraced.

Celebrating the strengths of black youth: increasing self-esteem and implications for prevention.

The purpose of this study was to test the impact of a preventive intervention program, celebrating the strengths of black youth (CSBY), on African American children's self-esteem, racial identity, and parental racial socialization messages. CSBY consisted of 10 in-person group sessions in which small groups of middle school students met two trained group leaders. Parents were invited to attend three of the 10 group sessions. African American children between the ages of 7 and 10 were randomly assigned to either a treatment (TX; n = 33) or waitlist control (WLC; n = 40) group. Pre- and post-measures were completed to capture treatment effects. Analyses revealed that treatment group participants had higher levels of self-esteem post intervention than WLC group participants. In addition, treatment group parents were more likely to communicate egalitarian messages to their children post intervention than WLC parents. The advantages of a cultural heritage, strengths-based preventive intervention for African American youth and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Development of social-emotional competence in boys of color: a cross-sectional cohort analysis from pre-K to second grade.

This article explores the development of psychosocial competence in boys of color (BOC; 226 African Americans and 109 Latinos). Changes in competence were assessed over 2 years in cohorts of low-income BOC beginning in pre-K, kindergarten, or first grade. Psycho-social competence was assessed in terms of self-regulation, interpersonal skills, and positive relationships with peers and teachers. Psycho-social and academic competence in literacy and math were assessed in prekindergarten through second grade using teacher reports, child reports, and normed measures. One-year follow-up data were available on measures of psycho-social competence. BOC evidenced high levels of psycho-social competence, especially on self-regulation, which was related to both math and reading achievement. Teachers and children held similarly favorable views of their relationships, but teacher ratings of peer relationships of BOC were less positive. Although emotional self-regulation was stable, declines were observed in self-regulation of attention, quality of peer relationships, teacher-rated closeness, and satisfaction with life at school, especially over the transition from pre-K to primary school.

Family income and its relation to preschool children's adjustment for families in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care.

The current study examines relations of mean-level estimates, linear changes, and instability in income and family processes to child outcomes and addresses whether income, through its impact on family functioning, matters more for children living in poverty. Temporal changes and instability in family processes, but not income, predicted children's adjustment. Cross-sectional mediational analyses indicated that for families living at the poverty threshold, family processes fully mediated the effect of average income over the study period on social behavior but only partially mediated its effect on cognitive-linguistic development. The strength of these associations diminished as average income exceeded the poverty threshold. That is, income had a greater impact on the family functioning and development of poor children than of nonpoor children.

Evaluation as a key part of health impact assessment: the English experience.

Health impact assessment (HIA) is an approach that has experienced increased activity and wide support within England. This is reflected in the large number of HIAs being undertaken at local and regional levels, by the advocacy of HIA in many national policy documents, and by the setting up of specialized HIA posts and centres. To continue this level of support, and to justify any increase, the approach of HIA must show whether and how the HIA approach informs the decision-making process and, in particular, whether it improves health and reduces health inequalities. The first steps in answering these questions have been taken by the partial evaluation of some completed HIAs within England. A description of these evaluations is presented. Work is also progressing on promising practice guidance for practitioners on the topic of evaluating HIAs. The further development of evaluation within HIA is required, at both a practitioner and research level, and provides an exciting opportunity for people and groups to advance the evidence base for HIA, while also proving its place as an effective public health intervention.