The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) recently awarded 28 Arkansas organizations a total of $48,000 as part of its Safe to Sleep campaign’s outreach to support efforts to reduce the rate of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and other sleep-related infant deaths in the state.
In Arkansas, 274 infants died from SIDS between 2008 and 2012. African American infants were almost twice as likely to die from SIDS compared to White infants. Regardless of cause, African Americans are twice as likely to die in infancy than Whites.
“We know that if a baby is always put to sleep on its back, the chance of that baby dying from SIDS is reduced by 50 percent. We also know that infants who are exposed to secondhand smoke are at greater risk for SIDS,” Dr Michelle Smith, director of Minority Health and Health Disparities at the Arkansas Department of Health, says in a release. “This funding will help support projects that will educate Arkansans, especially African Americans, on the importance of safe sleeping practices.”
Fourteen of the grantees are sorority chapters whose members are a part of the Arkansas Department of Health initiative SISTERS UNITED. Composed of the largest African American sororities—Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Zeta Phi Beta, and Sigma Gamma Rho—SISTERS UNITED works to reduce the rate of SIDS-related death in African American communities through public education and training, including hosting safety baby showers throughout the state to demonstrate safe sleep practices.
The full list of organizations that received mini-grant awards up to $2,000 include:
 1. Arkansas Birthing Project
 2. Chicot Memorial Medical Center
 3. Coalition for Tobacco Free Arkansas
 4. Craighead County Infant and Death Review Team
 5. Desha County Health Unit
 6. Epsilon Zeta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc
 7. Eta Sigma Zeta Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc
 8. Family Life Inc of Eastern Arkansas
 9. Forrest City Area Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc
10. Fort Smith Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc
11. Grandma’s House Children’s Advocacy Center Inc
12. Hot Springs Area Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc
13. Beta Pi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc
14. Jonesboro Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc
15. Kappa Nu Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc
16. Lincoln County Health Planning Committee
17. Little Rock Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc
18. Marianna Area Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc
19. Mu Chi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc
20. National Association of University Women
21. Northwest Arkansas Resource and Referral
22. Pi Chi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc.
23. Precious Heart Student Center
24. Southeast Arkansas Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc
25. United Community Resource Council
26. University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
27. West Memphis Area Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc
28. Zeta Dove Foundation of Little Rock