Thirteen schools across metro Atlanta are cashing in on their commitment to physical fitness, thanks to the Fire Up Your Feet Fall Activity Challenge, where students, their families and school staff compete to win money to promote exercise and wellness programs at their schools. A total of $7,000 was awarded to the winning schools, with the top prize of $1,500 going to Still Elementary School in Cobb County.
Fire Up Your Feet, which was launched in 2013 as part of Kaiser Permanente’s Thriving Schools initiative, is aimed at increasing physical activity before, during and after school. Using an online activity tracker, Challenge participants log their physical activity over the course of a month. In addition to Still Elementary, the following metro Atlanta schools also received Challenge Awards:
• Livsey Elementary in Tucker
• Parkside Elementary in Atlanta
• Dolvin Elementary in Johns Creek
• Summerour Middle in Norcross
• Ellis School of Atlanta
• Vaughan Elementary in Powder Springs
• Morrow Elementary in Clayton County
• Hampton Elementary in Hampton
• Clayton Elementary in Canton
• West Clayton Elementary in College Park
“Since participating in Fire Up Your Feet, Morrow Elementary has initiated ongoing fitness classes for students and adults, installed a walking track on campus, established a ‘mileage club’ where student walking is tracked and awarded, and helped garner staff support in developing a school wellness committee,” said Teresa Wheeler, who leads the physical education program at the Clayton County School, which won the top prize in a previous Fire Up Your Feet Activity Challenge.
Challenge Awards help to support walking school bus programs, the purchase of bike racks, safety vests, incentives for Walking Wednesdays, traffic safety countermeasures to help promote more walking and biking, and much more.
This fall, schools in Georgia, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maryland, Virginia, Oregon and Washington took part in the Activity Challenge. Thanks to the support of Kaiser Permanente, Fire Up Your Feet has awarded more than $567,000 since its launch.
“Each year, we hear the stories of schools who have jumped into action with Fire Up Your Feet,” said Peggy Agron, national director for Kaiser Permanente Thriving Schools. “We’re thrilled to see how school communities are making positive changes because of their engagement in the program.”
The next Activity Challenge will take place in the spring of 2017 and is open to any K-8 public, private or charter school in metro Atlanta. Sign up at fireupyourfeet.org.
About Fire Up Your Feet:
Fire Up Your Feet is a core program of Safe Routes to School National Partnership, available to any elementary or middle school (grades K-8) nationally. Made possible through funding from the Kaiser Permanente Community Benefit Fund at the East Bay Community Foundation, the program offers free resources including an online activity tracker, and a school fundraising organizer, all aimed at increasing physical activity before, during and after school for students, parents, staff and teachers. The National PTA is actively partnering to encourage family engagement to support both child and family health.
The Safe Routes to School National Partnership was founded in 2005 and works to advance safe walking and bicycling to and from school and in daily life, to improve the health and well-being of America’s children and to foster the creation of livable, sustainable communities. For more information, go to saferoutespartnership.org.
About Kaiser Permanente:
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve approximately 10 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to kp.org/share.
