ClearWay Minnesota(SM) Board Approves $1.4 Million in New Grants to Reduce Toba...( Board welcomes the Honorable Sheryl R...),Health

Board welcomes the Honorable Sheryl Ramstad, Christopher Georgacas and Mark

Mishek as its newest members

MINNEAPOLIS, May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- At its Board Meeting earlier today, the Board of Directors of ClearWay Minnesota(SM) approved $1.4 million in new grants to expand QUITPLAN(R) Services, to fund additional research projects and to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke by advancing smoke-free policy efforts in tribal communities. The Board also welcomed three new Board Members, the Honorable Sheryl Ramstad, Christopher Georgacas and Mark Mishek.

"These new grants reflect ClearWay Minnesota's goals of helping more Minnesotans quit, advancing research and reducing exposure to secondhand smoke," said David Willoughby, ClearWay Minnesota's Chief Executive Officer. "We are also excited to welcome three excellent new Board Members."

Expanding QUITPLAN(R) Services

QUITPLAN Centers provide free face-to-face counseling to any Minnesotan who wants help to quit smoking. Two new grants will add additional QUITPLAN Centers in St. Paul and St. Cloud. Grants were awarded to Open Cities Health Center of St. Paul and CentraCare Health Foundation of St. Cloud. Each group was awarded $220,000 for two years. These two new centers will complement existing QUITPLAN Centers in Minneapolis, Willmar, Thief River Falls and Duluth.

Advancing Research

ClearWay Minnesota awards competitive research grants to advance knowledge about reducing the harm of tobacco within Minnesota. Research grants were awarded for two projects to increase cessation efforts within the organized labor and Twin Cities American Indian communities.

-- A grant in the amount of $516,138 for three years was awarded to the

Tobacco Law Center -- in collaboration with the University of

Minnesota, UNITE HERE MN, UFCW Local 789, and the Laborers' District

Council of Minnesota and North Dakota and the Minnesota Labor
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