Health School Given $17,000

The School of Public Health has received a $17,000 grant from the federal government to carry on its nutrition program in Peru, it was learned yesterday.

This money goes toward supporting a health project which the school has been running in cooperation with the Peruvian government for the past five years.

The government grant came as part of $15,000,000 allocated under the Foreign Operations Administration to 40 United States universities for technical assistance in 26 foreign countries.

Five years ago the school set up this nutrition center in cooperation with the Department of Nutrition of the Peruvian Ministry of Health. Two to four experts from the school have directed a staff of 12 local doctors in improving the health of this South America country. Currently the program is under the direction of Dr. Philip L. White and his wife.

$23,000 Expenses

Periodically the school has assigned experts to assist in launching new projects in Peru. Last month Dr. David M. Hegsted, associate professor of Public Health, returned after spending the summer there.

Until this federal grant the school had borne the major costs of the project, which have totaled nearly $23,000 in the last few years. Actually the school still must pay for a large part of the expenses since the F.O.A. money is retroactive through this past year and will only cover costs through next year.

Because of the current projects success, Public Health officials feel that the government, under its technical assistance program, may wish to extend it into Bolivia and other South American countries. They take the current grant as a sign of the government's increasing interest in its public health projects.