2025 Annual Report
Update from Matt Crespin, MPH, RDH, FADHA
Hear from Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin’s (the Alliance) Executive Director, Matt Crespin, MPH, RDH, FADHA as he reflects on the successes of 2025.
2025 Budget
The Alliance is supported through grants and the generosity of health organizations, including our fiscal agent, Children’s Wisconsin.
2025 National Child Health Day Recap
National Child Health Day is a day to recognize the importance of children’s health. See how our community and partners came together on Oct. 6 to advocate #ForKidsHealth.
Emergency Care
Pediatric training for emergency care partners
Wisconsin Emergency Medical Services for Children (WI EMSC) provided virtual learning opportunities for emergency care providers in 2025.
Youth mental and behavioral health crises
With a 31% increase in emergency department visits for mental health crises among youth ages 12 to 17, WI EMSC secured funding from Wisconsin Department of Health Services to develop training tools for emergency care providers on pediatric mental health emergencies.
Wisconsin EMS agencies that have a Pediatric Emergency Care Coordinator (PECC) scored nearly 20% higher on pediatric readiness assessments than those without.
Environmental Health
6,997 children participating in Love My Air Wisconsin
The Love My Air Wisconsin dashboard expanded to 18 air quality sensors across Milwaukee, reaching more than 6,997 students at 15 partner Milwaukee Public Schools.
The Wisconsin Asthma Coalition connected with 236 professionals through virtual education in 2025, hosting quarterly webinars that attracted 156 registrants and an annual meeting that drew 80 participants.
Community-Led Momentum grant recipient
Secured an Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin grant to expand the Boosting Better Breathing project, bringing asthma support tools like our Love My Air Wisconsin program to schools across six counties: Brown, Kenosha, Menominee, Milwaukee, Racine and Rock.
Food Security
More than 664 families were connected with food resources, and 24 families enrolled in FoodShare as a result of adding a FoodShare outreach specialist to the clinical team.
Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment funding
The FoodCare Coalition is excited to grow five years of partnership work with support from an Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment grant, linking services across six partner groups and building stronger ties with Milwaukee residents.
Food is Medicine
The Builders Vision Foundation will support our Food is Medicine Coalition for the next two years. We look forward to building a strong statewide structure to guide community, system and policy goals to improve access to healthy local food across Wisconsin.
Injury Prevention and Death Review
Top 5 Ways Children Die From Injury in Wisconsin
Injuries are the leading cause of death among children in Wisconsin, with more than 850 children dying from all injury-related causes between 2020-24. This report examines the five most common injury-related causes of child death to inform prevention efforts.
Delivered statewide trainings on safe sleep practices, death scene investigations, data management and vicarious trauma prevention, equipping professionals with evidence-based skills to prevent child injuries and fatalities in their communities.
Community engagement from safe sleep surveys
Engaged caregivers to share beliefs, practices and opinions about the American Academy of Pediatrics’ infant safe sleep recommendations. Responses will drive updates to the Alliance’s sleep baby safe training.
Medical Home
The medical home initiative had conversations with 13 professionals and 11 families to better understand what information they need and how to strengthen our learning sessions. Read more about our conversations here.
High lead levels in children can impact development. The medical home initiative teamed up with the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program to highlight the work being done to improve early detection of lead and developmental delays.
515 checklists completed
Through a nine-month collaboration, 515 developmental monitoring checklists were completed across five communities to identify concerns for young children and strengthen local and tribal health departments’ capacity to prioritize developmental milestones.
Oral Health
Wisconsin Seal-A-Smile served 86,645 students in the 2024-25 school year, providing nearly $18 million in preventive dental care. 101,660 teeth were sealed and 170,787 received fluoride varnish.
Three clinics integrated preventive oral health care into primary care services through funding from the Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health-Improving Oral Health Integration Project in our first year.
Wisconsin’s first dental therapist
Wisconsin’s first dental therapist brings increased access to oral health care in rural areas. This pioneering model benefits children in pain and seniors needing surgical clearance, marking a new chapter in accessible dental care statewide.
A special thank you to our students for helping us serve children and families statewide.
Get Involved
The Alliance is Wisconsin’s voice for children’s health. Donate today to support the Alliance’s work to ensure children are healthy, safe and able to thrive.
