Let's get moving for National Nutrition Month!

Happy National Nutrition Month!  An emphasis on raising a healthier, more active generation of kids to combat the growing epidemic of childhood obesity here in the U.S. has been a top priority for First Lady Michelle Obama.  This month, the First Lady expanded her Let’s Move! campaign and launched Let’s Move! Active Schools, a collaboration with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and leaders from the public and private sectors to bring physical activity back to our schools.  In an email announcing the program, the First Lady calls for champions to help create an active school environment and start creating change in their community. 

Let’s Move! Active Schools also includes a before-school and afterschool component, recognizing these programs play a role encouraging kids to get active, stay active and lead healthier lives.  If your afterschool program is thinking about launching a new physical activity program, here are two funding opportunities that may be of interest:

• ASAP Acceleration Grants – The Active Schools Acceleration Project is accepting applications for $1,000 grants to help programs get a new physical activity curriculum up and running in elementary schools.  The deadline to submit an application is April 22, 2013.
• Carol M. White Physical Education Program Grant Announcement – This Department of Education grant provides funding to Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and community-based organizations to start, expand or enhance physical education programs in school or out of school for students in kindergarten through 12^th grade.  The application deadline is April 12, 2013.

Let’s Move! Active Schools is a great initiative that couldn’t have come at a better time.  Earlier this month, the Department of Health and Human Services released a report by the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition (PCFSN) and the Physical Activity Guidelines Midcourse Report Subcommittee that found less than one-third of high school students met the government recommended one hour of physical activity per day.  Not only are afterschool programs ideal partners in the effort to get kids active, but they are also helping kids eat nutritiously and make healthy decisions.  Together with schools and communities, afterschool programs can help healthy kids to grow up to become healthy adults—let’s move!