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NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

Health officials, elected representatives, school administrators and others are cooperating to improve health and promote wellness across America. The following is a snap shot of community and national efforts currently under way.

Community Programs
Communities have played a vital role in shaping American society by coming together to embrace opportunities and confront adversity. Today, local communities are using time-tested, grassroots principles to conquer overweight and obesity. The following are some initiatives that are making an impact:

  • Illinois Achievement Awards for Workplace Wellness recognize employers for health promotion programs that meet various levels of standards for a healthy workplace.

  • Fun, Food and Fitness program at the Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois, is a 21-hour summer session employing active learning techniques and hands-on activities in a targeted and supervised manner to teach children nutrition and basic food preparation skills.

  • Cristo Rey School-Based Nutrition Program at the Loyola University of Chicago School of Nursing provides weekly after-school sessions addressing weight management, diabetes, cardiovascular risk and other topics for Hispanic youth.

  • Eat Healthy, Stay Fit program at the Young Women’s Leadership Charter School in Chicago, Illinois, combines education, behavioral strategies and peer support to promote healthy eating habits and regular physical exercise in young women ages 14 to18.

  • Virginia on the Move encourages individuals to increase their levels of physical activity and to enjoy the many benefits of better health — without changing much of what they do everyday.

  • All Communities Exercise Day, presented by the Texas Physical Activity Network, seeks to educate Texans about the ease with which physical activity can be incorporated into their daily lives.

  • The Texas Trails Registry identifies existing trails in Texas in order to better develop and inform Texans about the existing infrastructure that supports and promotes a healthy lifestyle.

  • Texas on the Move encourages individuals to increase their levels of physical activity and to enjoy the many benefits of better health — without changing much of what they do everyday.

  • Fit Factor 5 in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is an initiative in which five elementary, middle and high schools’ Nutrition Advisory Councils (NACs) receive physical fitness kits containing balls, cones and jump ropes to be used in the design of school-specific fitness programs.

  • Intergenerational Health Support in Riverside County, California, improves the nutrition and fitness of children being raised by grandparents, using materials from the Five-a-Day Power Play curriculum for nutrition and the President’s Challenge for physical activities.

  • California on the Move encourages individuals to increase their levels of physical activity and to enjoy the many benefits of better health — without changing much of what they do everyday.

  • NEETO (Nutrition Exercise Education Training of Orlando, Florida) teaches children nutrition and physical activity through a weekly, 90-minute class over a four-month period.

  • The Food Is Fuel program at the Lakewood Elementary School in St. Petersburg, Florida, was set up to help students document food intake, plan future meals, track physical activities and evaluate progress; a fitness trail on school grounds provides supportive, non-competitive environment for teaching students regular exercise.

  • Signs for Life Program: A Children’s Roadmap to Nutrition and Fitness sponsored by the YMCA of Florida’s First Coast, Inc. in Jacksonville, Florida, follows children on a “road trip” of nutritional choices and fitness activities.

  • Colorado on the Move encourages individuals to increase their levels of physical activity and to enjoy the many benefits of better health — without changing much of what they do everyday.

  • The Team Nutrition initiative at Hayes Middle School in the Albuquerque, New Mexico, public schools targets sixth-grade students in a program that integrates nutrition and fitness concepts into the existing curriculum. The program also encourages families to reinforce nutrition and fitness at home with education classes and a fitness newsletter.

  • Wolfe's Neck Farm's Education Programs in Freeport, Maine, has specific nutrition and physical activity objectives to all its education programs to help children ages 4 to 14 and their families change lifestyle behaviors.

  • Shape Up Somerville, in coordination with Tufts University in Boston, is a community-based obesity prevention intervention targeting 6 to 8-year-olds, which will include a series of the 30 to 60-second announcements in elementary schools that include nutrition messages and motivators for physical activity.

  • Crunch and Munch at Public School 142 in New York City is an early intervention program targeted to 3 to 6-year-olds to help young students and their parents become familiar with a variety of nutritious foods.

  • Nutrition Under Ten: Moving, Eating, Growing (NUTMEG) in Oswego, New York,
    is a free program available to youth ages 3 to 8. This unique physical activity and nutrition education program empowers community members to take an active role in their health through "Sport for All," a program of the National Association for Sport and Physical Education, and a nutrition education learning program of the Cornell Cooperative Extension's Nutrition and Wellness Program.

  • New York on the Move encourages individuals to increase their levels of physical activity and to enjoy the many benefits of better health — without changing much of what they do everyday.

  • Tennessee on the Move encourages individuals to increase their levels of physical activity and to enjoy the many benefits of better health — without changing much of what they do everyday.

  • Healthy Ohioans: Small Steps, Big Strides is a health and awareness initiative to inspire individuals to examine their own lives and to take small steps to exchange unhealthy habits for healthier ones.

  • Stepping Up Physical Activity and Nutrition Practices Among North Dakota Youth is a two-part program intended to educate both high school and elementary school students about the importance of nutrition and physical activity.

  • Food, Fun and Fitness in Wahpeton, North Dakota, provides K-12 children, as well as adults, with opportunities to participate in consistent fitness activities and nutrition classes at six rural school sites.

  • Idaho on the Move encourages individuals to increase their levels of physical activity and to enjoy the many benefits of better health — without changing much of what they do everyday.

  • Nebraska on the Move encourages individuals to increase their levels of physical activity and to enjoy the many benefits of better health — without changing much of what they do everyday.


National Efforts
Non-profit, academic and health organizations with national reach also play an important role in promoting health and wellness. Through integrated and coordinated programs that communicate to diverse populations, nationwide efforts can impact the American public on a large scale.

  • Kidnetic.com is an educational Web site for kids ages 9 to 12, and parents, that delivers information and practical ideas for leading a balanced and healthy lifestyle, including healthy eating and regular physical activity, in a way that is fun. Kidnetic.com was developed by six health professional and communication organizations.

  • America On the Move™ aims to initiate and maintain measurable behavior changes to foster healthy lifestyles through increased physical activity and smart eating.

  • PE4Life seeks to inspire, educate and motivate America's youth to live active, healthy lives by supporting the improvement, expansion and recognition of school-based physical education programs and individual fitness level testing. www.pe4life.com

  • Hearts N' Parks is a national, community-based program designed to help park and recreation agencies encourage heart-healthy lifestyles in their communities.

  • Planet Health is an interdisciplinary curriculum sponsored by Harvard’s Prevention Research Center. It uses materials that can be easily and affordably incorporated into existing school curricula to improve the health and well-being of middle school students.