Grant Recipients' Perspectives

Tommy’s Road Elementary School Thanks AAHPERD and AHA
By: Sheila Wolfe, Grant Recipient, Tommy’s Road Elementary School, Goldsboro, NC

As Tommy’s Road Elementary School began the 2005-2006 school year, it began as an “Honor School of Excellence.” Myself, the students and the staff would like to thank AAHPERD for their graciousness in selecting me as an AAHPERD National Grant Recipient.

My grant proposal submission involved design and implementation of the TRE Tiger “PAWS” program. “PAWS” (Physical Education Without Stress) is an initiative to encourage daily physical activity within the school setting to comply with North Carolina’s Healthy Active Children’s Policy. This project, made possible through the funding provided by AAHPERD will certainly encourage the connectivity of psyche (mind) and soma (body) in our students and staff.

My knowledge of the physical education curriculum, our school’s increased enrollment and the inability of the physical education specialists to meet with each classroom of students on a daily basis created the challenge of promoting physical education from the administrative level to improve overall teaching and learning.

As a former physical education specialist and present Assistant Principal, I continue to advocate for healthy fitness levels of our students. With additional mandates of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), and ABC Accountability, many teachers are not prepared to develop a fitness program that will entail adequate supervised physical activity during “recess” time. In my administrative role, I realized the importance of a strong support system for the children we serve, therefore I implemented the “PAWS” project. The program was implemented as a staff development opportunity in which I designed and distributed a resource manual of innovative, integrative activities to our teachers. Once distributed, I hosted a workshop in which they learned and participated in activities that could be taught to students during physical activity days without the physical education specialist.

The grant included an all expense paid trip to Chicago, Illinois where I attended the National AAHPERD Convention and received a $1,200 gift certificate to US Games for the purchase of new physical education equipment for our school. Highlights of the convention included a Hawaiian Luau, a recognition banquet, and a chance to collaborate with other physical education professionals, master teachers, and leadership personnel.

Funds from the grant afforded each classroom a fitness “kit” which included equipment to provide and encourage structured play to include integrative activities that focus on teamwork, self-esteem, and cooperative play. Improving children’s fitness levels, being an integral part of student academic success, has been enhanced through the grant.

Believing that educational opportunities for children are only limited by our creativity, I continue on my quest to secure funding to promote healthy, active, productive learners. Winston Churchill once said, “We make a living by what we get, yet we make a life by what we give.” Thanks to AAHPERD and the AHA, you have made a life for the students and staff at Tommy’s Road Elementary School. Thank you for helping enhance the lives of our most precious resource---OUR CHILDREN!

If you have not applied for the AAHPERD JRFH/HFH grant, it is a must.

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Proud and Excited
By: Kem Dudney, Grant Recipient, Hallsboro Middle School, Hallsboro, NC

Hallsboro Middle School Tigers are so proud and excited being Hoops For Heart Grant Recipients. This grant will enable us to purchase a Dance Dance Revolution System that otherwise we could not afford to buy. The DDR system will promote cardiovascular fitness and help with coordination. With a student population of 388 students, our physical education budget is very small. I have been blessed to be a physical education teacher for 24 years and always teach my students to believe in themselves and believe that when things are meant to happen they will. I have written grants to try to enhance our program. This was the third try for the Hoops Grant and the children all said Ms. Dudney- you know we have to believe. When we got notification of being a grant winner we all yelled and the students kept saying we did it- We Believed and now we are going to get a DDR System. Faith sustains us all and I am very proud that the children I teach believe this and now will experience the joy of this addition in our gym classes.

Our students love Hoops for Heart and start asking me the date when they get off the bus the first day of school. Each child dedicates the event in honor of or in memory of a loved one. I make poster boards with touching hearts so that I can write the name of the students and then they can write the name of who they are playing for on the other heart. It is a heartwarming experience to see the students go up to the boards and touch the heart of their loved one. Tears roll down most of our cheeks as we watch these moments. Community participation is wonderful as they support our event financially or by helping in any capacity they can serve. Hoops for Heart lifts all of our spirits!

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A Million Thanks
By: Susan Carringer, Grant Recipient, Burks Middle School,Monterey, TN

I would like to take a moment to encourage anyone interested in getting more out of their program and out of their professional association to get involved and apply for the Jump Rope for Heart/Hoops for Heart grant. I received so much more from this grant program than just money; the experience was out of this world! Not only are you awarded a US Games gift certificate to enhance your physical education program, the expenses are paid for you to attend the AAHPERD National Convention. If you have never experienced the national convention you are definitely missing out! There are so many interesting and helpful sessions offered at this level. The only problem you will encounter is trying to find the time to attend all the sessions that interest you! There is also something to be said for the professional contacts and friends that you will meet while in attendance! The learning will continue even after the conference is over! I cannot express enough appreciation to Jackie Katounas for all the wonderful things she did for us. The association could not ask for a better representative! She was the sweetest most helpful person who either knew or knew where to find the answers to all of our questions. She really has it all together! I want to offer a million thanks for being given the opportunity to apply for and receive this grant; it provided a most unforgettable experience that I will cherish for a lifetime.