2015: Shannon Maynard becomes CHC’s Executive Director after Ed Cooney’s retirement. CHC launches its 8th class of Leland Fellows and 22nd class of Emerson Fellows. Alumni for both programs together top 500.
2013: CHC celebrates its 20th Anniversary and the strength and accomplishments of the committed anti-hunger leaders it has developed. They serve in government agencies, NGOs, food banks and advocacy organizations, domestically and internationally, where they apply the skills and experience gained as fellows to advance the fight to end hunger.
2010: After several years developing capacity and expertise on the intersections of hunger, poverty and racism, the Emerson Program adds racial equity to its core objectives. Also, CHC begins honoring one outstanding alumni from each program with an Alumni Leadership Award at its annual Awards Ceremony.
2009: CHC launches the Child Hunger Initiative on Learning and Development (CHILD) with ConAgra Foods Foundation support.
2006: CHC and the Association of Nutrition Services Agencies (ANSA) conduct a public education campaign on importance of food as medicine for people living with HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses, supported by The UPS Foundation.
2005: CHC establishes an annual Congressional Award Ceremony to recognize leaders who have made important contributions to the fight against hunger. The first recipients are former Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman and then Senator Elizabeth Dole. Since 2005, CHC has continued to honor anti-hunger leaders – from Congress, the Administration and civil society – at this annual event.
2004: CHC partners with The UPS Foundation to convene a National Hunger Forum at the National Academies Institute of Medicine in Washington, DC.
2002: CHC Founder Tony Hall is appointed by President Bush to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to the Food and Agriculture Agencies of the United Nations in Rome. Representatives Jo Ann Emerson and James P. McGovern are elected to co-chair CHC’s Board of Directors. Also, Congress authorizes the Bill Emerson and Mickey Leland International Hunger Fellowships.
2001: Edward M. Cooney, former Special Assistant for Nutrition to USDA Secretary Dan Glickman, becomes CHC’s Executive Director. Also, CHC launches the Mickey Leland International Hunger Fellows Program. The original 14 Leland International Hunger Fellows members serve field and policy placements in Africa, South America and Asia and Washington, DC working on issues ranging from agriculture and emergency response to school feeding and nutrition.
1999: The U.S. Congress begins providing supporting funds through the U.S. Department of Agriculture to establish the Mickey Leland International and Bill Emerson National Hunger Fellowships.
1997: John Morrill, a former Select Committee on Hunger staff member, succeeds Gene Dewey as CHC’s Executive Director.
1995: CHC receives a challenge grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service.
1994: CHC wins a grant from VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) to establish a national anti-hunger leadership development program. The first class of national hunger fellows consists of 20 emerging leaders and includes both field and policy placements. Additionally, CHC teams with Victory Wholesale Group to launch the annual “Victory Against Hunger” awards, which recognize innovative and effective anti-hunger organizations with small unrestricted grants. This program continued through 2010, awarding over $350,000 to organizations throughout the United States.
1993: Congressmen Tony Hall, Bill Emerson and Frank Wolf establish CHC to continue the bipartisan anti-hunger, anti-poverty legacy of the House Select Committee on Hunger, defining CHC’s purpose as “Fighting Hunger by Developing Leaders.” A diverse board is formed including hunger policy experts, representatives of the food industry, activists and several members of Congress. Arthur “Gene” Dewey, a former official in the George H. W. Bush Administration, becomes CHC’s first Executive Director.