Easy Steps for State-level Advocacy

There are a couple of important advocacy opportunities coming up that could have nationwide impact on physical education. PE, health and wellness, and sporting goods industry leaders will be going to Capitol Hill to educate Congress Members on the impact of quality PE and ask for their support.

SGMA’s National Health Through Fitness Day (NHTF Day) March 6-7th, 2012

NASPE’s Speak Out Day, March 28-29th, 2012

If you’re not able to participate in these events, there are ways you can get involved on a local level. NASPE is hosting a free “Advocacy 101” webinar on March 8th at 3:00pm. You can register for the webinar here. We’ve also got John Baker from Des Moines Public Schools, back with his simple strategies for reaching his state-level policy makers, and his message to them.




You can view Mr. Baker’s strategies for advocating to parents here.

Click on the following links to find contact information for your State Senators and Local Members of Congress.

To stay up to date on physical education / physical activity issues, bookmark AAHPERD Advocacy's Legislative Action Center.

What's the first "bold action" Congress should take in solving the childhood obesity epidemic?

James S. Marks, senior vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, recently wrote a powerful article titled "We Need Bold Action on Childhood Obesity" in the Huffington Post. In the article, he highlights some statistics that have made headlines lately. You've probably heard or seen a few of them at some point, but seeing the facts presented together is astonishing:

• Adult obesity rates rose in 28 states over the past year and declined only in the District of Columbia.
• Nearly one-third of children are obese or overweight, placing them at higher risk for diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and a host of other serious chronic illnesses.
• 84% of Americans believes the childhood obesity epidemic is a serious problem -- Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and Tea Party supporters agree.
• 56% believe we should launch a comprehensive national program to prevent childhood obesity, even if we have to invest billions of dollars now to prevent hundreds of billions in costs later.

As physical educators or advocates of quality physical education, you guys are the ones that see first-hand the toll childhood obesity is having on our children. So, we want your input on a few questions:

1. If the study is right and 85% of Americans believe childhood obesity is a serious problem, then what can we do, as individuals, to help solve this crisis?

2. Marks suggests strengthening the National School Lunch Program as the first "bold step" Congress should take in combating the childhood obesity epidemic. What do you recommend as the first "bold step?"