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District starts investing funds on fitness-based equipment
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| By: Amber Gieseke |
November 10, 2009 |
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The School District of Chetek was awarded the Carol M. White Physical Education Program grant by the federal government in August, and the funds have started going toward new equipment to ensure healthy lifestyle choices for the students.
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Over the next three years, the school district will be awarded $975,000 to reach a fitness goal-each student spends x amount of time engaged in moderate to vigorous activity each week. High school and middle school students are expected to exercise more than 225 minutes per week, and elementary students are aiming for 150 minutes per week.
"We are currently collecting data on the amount of physical activity (moderate or vigorous) that students are doing each week so we can rewire the physical education curriculum to focus on vigorous activity rather than competition," said PEP grant coordinator Bob Rykal.
"Kids are active," added elementary physical education teacher Hillary Nichols, "but some are finding out they aren't as active as they should be. We want to get them red-faced and sweaty."
To get the students to engage in the necessary amount of activity, teachers outside of the gymnasium are also getting a portion of the funds.
In Roselawn Elementary School, part of the grant funds will be used to purchase projectors and DVD players to use when indoor recess is necessary. They will engage students with interactive DVDs and games to ensure they still get their heart rates up even when they aren't able to get outside and run around.
Fifth-grade science and the Roselawn elementary teachers have also asked for funds to support fitness-based curriculum in their classes.
In the first year of the grant, Roselawn will receive most of the new equipment and upgrades, and the classroom materials for fitness will use almost $20,000 of the grant funds.
Supplies worth around $31,000 from year one of the grant will go to a middle and high school fitness assessment plan, which requires laptops and blood pressure kits and other tools to keep track of each student's fitness level.
Nichols noted that the elementary school physical education program has suffered from cuts in the recent past, so she is also looking forward to investing in new equipment she hasn't been able to replace in a while as well as an exertainment system and outdoor equipment (rollerblades and snow shoes). To top off the $124,000 spent to boost the elementary P.E. program, a 40-foot-long by 8-foot-tall climbing wall will be installed in the gym Tuesday.
Year two of the grant includes all three schools. It allows the elementary music teacher more rhythm and fitness-based activity CDs and props as well as gives core classrooms DVDs and games to further the choices students have to be active during indoor recesses.
The middle school will benefit the most during year two, gaining $20,000 toward outdoor equipment to be used during recess.
The middle and high schools will gain mountain bikes and helmets, rollerblades, kayaks and life jackets, snow shoes, cross country skis and a storage shed for it all for just under $74,000 of the grant money.
High-schoolers will see an improved workout room in year three, with nearly $92,000 spent on fitness equipment, including dumbbells, weight machines, weights, steppers, treadmills, ellipticals and bikes.
Rykal said this equipment will be added to the existing weight rooms, and some older equipment may need to be replaced with the new to ensure there is enough space.
Although this year is getting off to a slow start, Rykal believes this time next year they'll be ahead of the curve.
"We're hoping to put new equipment in place before school starts next year," he explained.
They already have a draft budget and are in the process of making sure they know what they want and what is best for the district and students before ordering everything.
"We want to make sure things will stand the test of time and create lifelong habits," said Rykal. "We're not just ordering stuff to spend the money, and we want to make sure we're spending the money wisely."
Besides matching some funds during the three years of grant money, Superintendent Al Brown said it is the school's responsibility to fit maintenance of all fitness equipment, personnel and after- and before-school exercise programs into the budget.
"The commitment of the district is to continue to invest in the well-being of students' health," he said.
At the end of these three years, the district will examine whether community members will be able to take advantage of the equipment bought by grant funds.
"Within the grant cycle itself, community members cannot use the supplies," Brown explained. "It's part of the grant rules."
Brown is excited about the possibilities gained from receiving the grant.
"It's not just about physical education," he said. "It helps other classes supplement fitness. It's about play and music and having stuff to do on a playground. The emphasis is on lifelong fitness and healthy choices and not just about exercising during gym class."
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©The Chetek Alert 2010
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