A Mutidisciplinary University-School Partnership to Address Obesity

In order to address risk for obesity, this project was designed to target students and school employees from 5 elementary schools in a Midwestern district. The project was conducted in two phases. Phase 1 focused on assisting employees in developing and maintaining a healthy lifestyle that will decrease their risk for obesity. Activities included fitness programming, eating guides, self-esteem workshops, and team-focused weigh-ins. Phase 2 was aimed at reducing the students' risk for obesity. Activities focused on creating a nurturing school environment, providing education on healthy eating, and providing opportunities for physical activity. Results indicate a significant decrease (.05) in employees' fat mass accompanied by a significant increase (.05) in the number of days they reported engaging in physical activity. Students participating in the program reported a significant increase (.05) in: exercise frequency, consumption of fruits and vegetables, attitudes toward healthy living, consumption of breakfast, decrease in “screen time”, decrease in soft-drink consumption, and increase in milk consumption. These results indicate that university-led programming can have a positive impact on the level of risk for obesity in a local school district. In addition, presenters will discuss the roles the multiple disciplines from the university played in assessment, program planning, and evaluation and how the involvement of the university allowed for professional development of university students without placing a burden on the resources of the school district.