South Fulton Today

Fulton County’s College Park Elementary School is among three campuses in the U.S. that will be home to a newly renovated food access space made possible through a partnership between the Heart of America Foundation, Anthem Inc. and iHeart Media Inc.

A Nov. 4 press release from Heart of America said the construction of on-campus produce gardens and permanent food pantries at College Park and schools in Los Angeles and New York City is part an initiative the three entities launched in September to fight food insecurity.

"Anthem is pleased to work with Heart of America and iHeartMedia on innovative approaches to transform the spaces on these campuses, where students will not only have access to healthy food but also learn skills that will help them lead healthier lives," Dr. Shantanu Agrawal, Anthem’s chief health officer, said in the release.

The customized school transformation project at College Park is a food pantry that will provide students and their families fresh and shelf-stable meals.

The development was unveiled by Heart of America, Anthem and iHeart Media on Nov. 17.

"This work underscores the importance of designing schools with spaces that address the unique needs of the communities they're in,” Jill Hardy Heath, Heart of America’s president and CEO, said in the release. “Through this partnership, these three schools across the country will have access to healthy food through gardens and food pantries that will impact students for generations to come.”

iHeartMedia Markets Group President Hartley Adkins said his company values community service.

"iHeartMedia joined this collaboration alongside Heart of America and Anthem because we believe in being a companion to our community," Adkins said in the release. "As the national media partner behind this initiative, we're proud to do as much as possible to raise awareness around addressing food insecurity in our communities." 

According to Heart of America’s website, the nonprofit says it has “transformed spaces into modern learning environments so students and communities can learn and grow” since its inception in 1997.

To date, the Washington, D.C.-based organization has rebuilt and revitalized nearly 800 spaces in schools across the country, the release said.