A West Virginia University graduate student will promote healthy lifestyle choices for kids with the help of a $10,000 grant from the General Mills Champions for Healthy Kids program.

Wheeling native Megan Govindan, a masters candidate in WVU s Human Nutrition and Foods Program, will work with the Shack Neighborhood House in Pursglove, W.Va. (Monongalia County), to implement the Helping HAND (Health Awareness and Nutrition Decisions) program shes designed.

Kids of all ages who attend the Shack’s after-school program will be able to participate and learn more about making nutritious decisions and incorporating more physical activity into their everyday lives,Govindan explained.

We will be presenting different nutrition, physical education modules to get kids excited about taking care of themselves and leading healthy lives. We will focus on the importance of eating right and exercising. We will also be using the video game Dance Dance Revolution at the Shack to encourage physical activity,she added.

The General Mills Foundation, in partnership with the American Dietetic Association Foundation and the President’s Council on Physical Fitness, developed the Champions for Healthy Kids grant program in 2002.

Each year, the General Mills Foundation awards 50 grants of $10,000 each to community-based groups that develop creative ways to help youth adopt a balanced diet and physically active lifestyle. This is the first time a West Virginia initiative has received a grant from the program.

The application process for the grants is extremely competitive, according to Cindy Fitch, an associate professor of human nutrition and foods in WVU s Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences.

General Mills received over 1,300 applications and funded 50,Fitch said.

Govindan completed her undergraduate degree in human nutrition and foods at WVU and is currently undertaking an internship that will help her become a registered dietician.