Healthy Community Initiative

Northfield Superintendent Dr. Matt Hillmann ends his tenure with Northfield Public Schools on June 30 and starts a new job as executive director of the Minnesota Association of School Administrators. His successor, Dr. Tim Anderson, assumes the role of superintendent on July 1. HCI Communications Manager Joy Riggs sat down recently with Hillmann to discuss […]

by Karra Howles as a Guest Columnist for the Northfield News As a St. Olaf College senior this past year, I had the opportunity to intern as an office and operations team assistant for Healthy Community Initiative. Before starting my position at HCI, I had heard of the organization in passing but did not realize […]

More accessible playgrounds for kids in wheelchairs. More trees and places to play sports. More chain restaurants. Fewer bike lanes. Fifth graders had numerous suggestions for how to improve the City of Northfield when given the chance to speak at a mock city council public comment session on Tuesday at Greenvale Park Elementary School. Four […]

Healthy Community Initiative (HCI) is celebrating National Prevention Week (May 10-16) by recognizing the efforts of local prevention champions. The Rice County Chemical and Mental Health Coalition recently presented 2026 Prevention Champion awards to Yahye Noor, an officer with the Faribault Police Department, and Kelli Podracky, Executive Director of the Northfield Union of Youth. The […]

More than a dozen students from all three Northfield elementary schools have been paired with college mentors this spring for after-school music lessons offered in partnership with Northfield Community School.  The mentors and mentees were matched depending on their chosen instruments (orchestra, band, vocal or piano). The 45-minute, weekly music practice sessions started March 2 […]

Healthy Community Initiative (HCI) presented Northfield Superintendent Matt Hillmann with its first “Friend of HCI” award Wednesday, April 15, at its annual community breakfast at St. Olaf College. District Youth Council (DYC) co-chairs Delphine Hawkins and Atticus Mayer made the surprise announcement halfway through the program.  The award was given to Dr. Hillmann for his […]

By Mariana Cruz, Néepa Hyde, and Byrd Lenzen as Guest Columnists for the Northfield News Over the course of 10 years, Northfield YouthBank has granted $200,000 to nearly 80 youth-led projects. Continuing the program’s dedication to uplifting the voices and ideas of young people in Northfield, the local YouthBank chapter launched a grant round in […]

by Carrissa Glarner as a Guest Columnist for the Northfield News Before I completed Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) training, the idea of talking to people about suicide intimidated me. If it had arisen in conversation, I might have worried I’d say the wrong thing and avoid the topic. But after completing the 90-minute online training […]

HCI has a new look! Along with our refreshed logo and website, we have rolled out a new domain name – hci-mn.org – and revised mission and vision statements that reaffirm our commitment to creating healthy communities where all children, youth, and families thrive. “This year, HCI’s staff, board, and community partners reflected on our rich […]

HCI’s program staff has been hard at work making sure that our immigrant and refugee neighbors have access basic needs, transportation, and legal support. We are grateful for their efforts and for all the individuals and groups in Rice County that are stepping up to help, including those featured in this WCCO-CBS news story. Click here […]