Summer 2009
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This information was printed from The President's Council on Physical
Fitness and Sports,
located at http://www.fitness.gov
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From the Acting Executive Director
Penelope Slade-Sawyer
The PCPFS staff continues to plug away with its work supporting the mission of the Council and I do my best to do the same. As seems fitting to do around National Physical Fitness and Sports Month, the Council recognizes those who have made significant contributions to physical activity, fitness, and sports in their communities and worldwide.
I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Betty Perkins-Carpenter and presenting her with the Council’s Lifetime Achievement Award in Washington, DC. Betty has dedicated most of her life to improving the well-being of others through her work in the sports of swimming and diving and, more recently, her work advancing the health of young children and senior citizens. I presented the award in the office of Congresswoman Louise Slaughter whose children Betty taught to swim. Betty’s work touched individuals in her backyard (literally, her backyard pool) and around the world. It was an honor to recognize her and her work. I hope to do the same for our other honorees, Asahel “Ash” Hayes and George Nissen. Considering Dr. Hayes’ direct service to the Council and Mr. Nissen’s considerable work advancing gymnastics and the trampoline, both men certainly are deserving. Please keep in mind individuals you may wish to recognize and consider nominating them for either the PCPFS Community Leadership or Lifetime Achievement Awards.
It was an honor to be asked to deliver the keynote address at the American Alliance for Health Physical Education Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) annual meeting in April. I was able to meet some of the attendees and hear about their work in their classrooms and communities. AAHPERD members are doing some outstanding work! I was in Austin later in April to present Dr. Waneen Spirduso with the PCPFS Science Honor Award. Dr. Spirduso’s research has focused on the impact of health and physical activity on cognitive and motor function in older adults and the effects of physical activity on quality of life among the frail elderly. It was a privilege to present this tribute to Waneen for her outstanding contributions to the field.
May 1 brought the launch of the 2nd National President’s Challenge (NPC). We are honored that President Obama recognized the launch of the NPC in the proclamation he signed designating May as National Physical Fitness and Sports Month. Much consideration was given to having the NPC this year. Without Council members in place to champion and promote our activities, it’s difficult to drum up visibility for our work. However, we decided that the need for physical activity participation is too great not to move forward with this Challenge. The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans remind us of that and so we continue to engage Americans of all ages and abilities in their quest to improve their own health and well-being through regular physical activity. We’ll see how many decided to take on the National President’s Challenge when the initiative ends July 24th. May the most active State win!
Here’s to a safe and active summer!
Regards,
Penelope Slade-Sawyer, PT, MSW
RADM USPHS
Acting Executive Director
Council Members' News and Activities
There are no Council members in place at this time. Information regarding new Council appointments will be released when it is available.
Mark Your Calendar
2009
July
1-2 National Physical Activity Plan Conference, Washington, DC
1-7 National Clean Beaches Week
8-11 National Strength and Conditioning Association National Conference, Las Vegas, NV
27-29 CDC Weight of the Nation Conference, Washington, DC
August
1-15 2009 National Senior Games
September
10-12 National Disability Sports Conference, Kennesaw, GA,
10-13 National Institute on Recreation Inclusion, San Antonio, TX
October
28-31 Annual School Health Conference, Denver, CO
December
2-5 Medical Fitness and Healthcare Conference, Orlando, FL
Grant Deadlines
Active Living Research 2009—RWJF New Connections Call for Proposals focuses on studies of policy and environmental strategies for increasing physical activity, decreasing sedentary behaviors and preventing obesity among children and adolescents. Research and publication grants are available. To view the Call for Proposals, please go to http://www.activelivingresearch.org/alr
/grantsearch/grantopportunities.
Applications due: July 29, 2009 by 1pm PT
President's Challenge Program Updates
New Research Digest
“School Physical Education as a Viable Change Agent to Increase Youth Physical Activity” is the title of the June 2009 PCPFS Research Digest. Download the article by visiting: http://www.presidentschallenge.org/misc/ news_research/research_digests/june2009.pdf
Play Nerdel’s President’s Challenge poster game.
Visit the following link and answer some questions about the activities featured on the latest President’s Challenge poster designed by world-famous artist Charles Fazzino. http://www.nerdel.com/presidents_challenge/
Join the President’s Challenge on Facebook.
The President's Challenge group will provide members with instant news relating to the program, and will also announce new program events. To join the group, you must first register your own Facebook profile at http://www.facebook.com/. Upon successfully registering, perform the following steps to join the group:
- From the home screen, find the search box in the top right corner
- In the search box, enter the terms "President's Challenge"
- Find the group with the President's Challenge logo, and click on the logo
- Once in the group page, click the link under the logo that says "Join Group"
New Contact
As of June 17th, Jane Wargo is serving as the PCPFS contact for the President’s Challenge program. Please contact Jane at 202.690.5157 or jane.wargo@hhs.gov if you are interested in discussing opportunities to work with the President’s Challenge program.
What's New at HHS
Kathleen Sebelius, former Govenor of Kansas, was sworn in as the 21st Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services on April 29th. To learn more about Secretary Sebelius, please visit http://www.hhs.gov/secretary/.
Howard Koh, M.D., MPH was recently confirmed as the new Assistant Secretary for Health. Dr. Koh was most recently the Harvey V. Fineberg Professor of the Practice of Public Health, Associate Dean for Public Health Practice, and Director of the Division of Public Health Practice at the Harvard School of Public Health. Prior to that Dr. Koh served as Commissioner of Public Health for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. To learn more about Dr. Koh and the work of the Assistant Secretary for Health, please visit http://www.hhs.gov/ophs/leadership/ash.html,
Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
Don’t forget the physical activity e-cards available at http://www.healthfinder.gov/ecards/cards.aspx. These free e-cards can be personalized to encourage family, friends, and colleagues to get active and eat healthy (among other behaviors). Feel free to link to these e-cards from your Web site.
The Secretary's Advisory Committee on National Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives for 2020 will hold a meeting on the Internet on July 10, 2009 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The meeting will be open to the public. Participation in the meeting is limited. Registrations will be accepted until maximum capacity is reached. To register, please visit: www.healthypeople.gov/hp2020/advisory/default.asp.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The free LEANWorks! Website launched on June 25th. LEANWorks! (LEAN stands for Leading Employees to Activity and Nutrition) is targeted towards small and medium sized employers interested in implementing an obesity-prevention program. Among the resources that are provided on the Website:
- An obesity cost-calculator where employers can input employee demographic data to estimate the total costs associated with obesity and determine annual obesity-related medical costs for their companies.
- Information and resources to help employers plan, build, promote, and assess interventions to combat obesity.
- Information on how employers can estimate return on investment, a measure of the cost of an intervention compared to the expected financial return of the intervention.
Please visit www.cdc.gov/leanworks to learn more.
“Halting Obesity” describes the efforts of the CDC to address obesity by creating places where Americans can make healthy choices about nutrition and physical activity and where such choices are available, affordable, and accessible.
This feature highlights DNPAO's efforts to reduce obesity and its related conditions through policy and environmental strategies, developing partnerships, and innovative programming.
To read the feature, go to www.cdc.gov and click on “Halting Obesity” or visit http://www.cdc.gov/Features/HaltingObesity/
Be sure to check out the “Healthy Community Design” video featuring Dr. Howard Frumkin, Director of the National Center for Environmental Health. The 15-minute video provides a great overview of the principles that create healthier communities and the impact such communities can have on levels of physical activity, air quality, and social interaction. The video recently won an Aurora Award for excellence in film and video production. To view the video, please visit
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyplaces/healthy_comm_design.htm
Concussion Resources
As many as 3.8 million sports and recreation-related concussions occur each year. Signs and symptoms may not be immediately apparent. The “Heads Up: Concussion in Youth Sports” initiative has a wide variety of free web-based and printed materials to help coaches, parents, and players recognize the symptoms of concussion and ways to ensure proper treatment and follow-up. As the summer sports season gets underway, don’t forget to share these valuable resources with your colleagues, friends, and family members. Please visit: http://www.cdc.gov/concussioninyouthsports/
And Elsewhere….
Department of the Interior
National Park Service (NPS) and YMCA National Partnership
The NPS, looking to help address the obesity epidemic and ensure future outdoor recreation enthusiasts and the YMCA, wanting to encourage more outdoor activity, saw the benefit of a national partnership. The NPS has already provided technical assistance to a half-dozen YMCAs across the US. Read more about one of these partnerships at: http://www.nps.gov/ncrc/programs/rtca/whatwedo/09/SC.pdf
USDA
Forest Service Launches Discover the Forest.org
The Forest Service’s new Website, www.discovertheforest.org, targets tweens (ages 9-12) and their parents. The easy to use site features an interactive map to help users find forests and parklands across the country and the activities, such as hiking, camping, birding, and canoeing available. The site also offers free, downloadable games and activity sheets to engage children and adults alike. The Website was launched in conjunction with the new public service announcements developed in partnership with the Ad Council. The campaign, Where the Other You Lives, encourages children to get outdoors and explore. Learn more about the campaign at www.discovertheforest.org.
American Public Health Association (APHA)
APHA approved the organization of the Physical Activity Special Primary Interest Group (PA SPIG). The creation of this special interest group within APHA allows members with an interest in physical activity to come together and raises visibility for the issues of physical activity and sedentary lifestyles within the association. The leaders of this movement note that it is critical for APHA members who have an interest in physical activity to join PA SPIG because100 members must sign-up initially, and 250 members must join within 3 years to become a long-standing section.
Children and Nature Network: Nature Rocks!
Nature Rocks is designed to inspire and empower parents to take their families out to play, explore and enjoy quality time in nature for happier, healthier and smarter children. The initiative offers tools adults can use to plan their time in the great outdoors. To learn more, please visit: www.naturerocks.org.
National Association for Health and Fitness (NAHF)
NAHF announced the 2009 Gold Star Awards honorees. These awards recognize individuals and organizations that have lead in the promotion and improvement of physical activity and sports. This year’s honorees are: Ms. Stacy Fowler, President of the Colorado Governor’s Council; the California Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports; and Mr. Bert Knitter, recipient of the Glenn Swengros Award.
National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA)
NATA has issued a position statement on the management of spine-injured athletes. Among those under the age of 30, sport participation is the second most common cause of spine related injury. The guidelines are for athletic trainers and other health care professionals, coaches, and athletes. Among the recommendations is a reminder that, “non-medical professionals should refrain from touching or moving an athlete who might have a spinal injury and should never remove any helmets, pads or other equipment from an injured athlete; the team's athletic trainer and/or other on-site medical staff will assess the injured athlete and determine whether he or she requires an ambulance.”
While football is associated with the greatest number of catastrophic spinal injuries for all U.S. sports, skiing, rugby, gymnastics, swimming and diving, track and field (e.g., pole vaulting), cheerleading and baseball also involve activities that place participants at risk for spine injuries.
To read NATA’s position statement in its entirety, visit:
http://www.nata.org/statements/position/AcuteMgtCervicalSpineInjuredAth.pdf
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
The Leadership for Healthy Communities Program released, “Action Strategies Toolkit: A Guide for Local and State Leaders Working to Create Healthy Communities and Prevent Childhood Obesity.” The policy options and resources included in the toolkit were selected after a careful review by the 11 policy- maker organizations participating in the program. To download a fee copy of the toolkit, please visit: http://www.leadershipforhealthycommunities.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=352&Itemid=154
Safe Routes to School National Partnership
The Safe Routes to School 2009 Policy Report-Moving to the Future: Building on Early Achievements discusses policies and practices that affect the ability of children to walk or bicycle to school. The report also discusses policies that facilitate implementation of SRTS programs. To read the report, visit: http://www.saferoutespartnership.org/media/file/SRTS-09-FinalPolicy.pdf
The Safe Routes to School State Network Project: 2008 Annual Progress Report highlights accomplishments and lessons learned in 2008. Visit: http://www.saferoutespartnership.org/media/file/SRTS-09-Final-AR.pdf
The Council of State Governments
Be sure to check out the latest legislative policy briefs, talking points, and toolkits available for free by the Council of State Governments Healthy States Initiatives. The items cover a wide variety of topics including disease prevention through physical activity, school wellness policies, workplace health, and community wellness initiatives. Visit http://www.healthystates.csg.org/Publications.
Up2Us
Up2Us is “a national coalition that is leading a movement to redefine the role of sports in the lives of young Americans.” Currently, the organization has networks in San Francisco, Boston and New York City and is looking to expand to Washington, DC. An informational conference was held May 28th to help kick-start the process.
Up2Us focuses on sports-based youth development, particularly in underserved communities to develop the leadership skills, discipline, and positive peer relationships that will help youth succeed on the field and, most importantly, in life. The organization also connects volunteer coaches to local programs and provides resources to help train coaches on sports-based youth development. To learn more, please visit www.up2us.org.
Examples of other programs working abroad to develop leadership and life skills through sports participation is A Ganar/Vencer, led by the Partners of Americas. The program operates in multiple countries throughout South America and targets young men and women between the ages of 16 and 24 who come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. To learn more, please visit http://www.partners.net/partners/Aganar_Home_EN.asp?SnID=29129253
Peace Players International also uses sport (basketball) to bridge social divides and unite and educate children living in historically divided communities, such as Northern Ireland, South Africa, Israel and the West Bank, and Cyprus. A secondary goal is to educate children to lead healthy, constructive lives. To learn more about Peace Players International, please visit http://www.peaceplayersintl.org/index.aspx