American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance - AAHPERD

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

American Alliance Partners with First Lady's Let's Move Active Schools to Get Kids Moving

RESTON, VA, February 28, 2013 – The American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) is proud and excited to be a part of First Lady Michelle Obama's newly released Let's Move! Active Schools - an unprecedented collaboration to bring physical activity back to American schools. The program provides simple steps and tools, including monetary support and training, to help schools create active environments where students get 60 minutes of daily physical activity through quality physical education and physical activity before, during and after the school day.

Let's Move! Active Schools mobilizes "School Champions" – P.E. teachers, classroom teachers, administrators, staff, and even parents – who are ready and willing to be leaders for their school community. These champions go to LetsMoveSchools.org and follow a simple, six-step process that includes building a team, conducting a basic school assessment, and creating a customized action plan. Participating schools will have access to free tools and resources, ranging from in-person trainings, to program activation grants to direct, personal assistance from certified professionals.

As a managing organization for Let's Move! Active Schools, AAHPERD will work to recruit individual champions, provide customized support to schools, and facilitate the training of at least 20,000 school Physical Activity Leaders over the next five years.

According to AAHPERD Chief Executive Officer E. Paul Roetert, "Physical educators have always known that children are designed to move. Now through Let's Move! Active Schools, we are thrilled to elevate our efforts in increasing physical activity before, during and after school to a larger national stage. Our role will be to provide professional development training so that physical educators will create even more early, positive experiences for all children. We want physical activity to become an integral part of their daily lives."

Joining CEO Roetert at the Let's Move! Active Schools launch in Chicago with First Lady Michelle Obama were state, district and national AAHPERD leaders. AAHPERD President Irene Cucina says, "What a joy it is to see the impact of our Let's Move in School initiative to increase physical activity before, during and after school on Let's Move! Active Schools. This is a fabulous opportunity for every physical education teacher in the country to be his or her school's physical activity champion."

Registered Let's Move! Active Schools will have an opportunity to access resources from such partners as Alliance for a Healthier Generation, NIKE, Inc., the GENYOUth Foundation, ChildObesity180, Kaiser Permanente, and the Presidential Youth Fitness Program partners, including the General Mills Foundation. To register go to: www.letsmoveschools.org.

For more information, read the press release from the Office of the First Lady.

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Contact:
Paula Kun
pkun@aahperd.org
703-476-3461

The vision of AAHPERD is "Healthy People – Physically Educated and Physically Active!" Headquartered in Reston, VA, 25 miles west of Washington, DC, AAHPERD is the largest organization of professionals involved in physical education, physical activity, dance, school health and sport--all specialties related to achieving an active, healthy lifestyle. Its mission is to advance professional practice and promote research related to health and physical education, physical activity, dance and sport by providing its members with a comprehensive and coordinated array of resources, support and programs to help practitioners improve their skills to further the health and well-being of the American public. For more information, visit www.aahperd.org.