School - Community agency partnerships to improve fitness levels in students

The state of Georgia has the 3rd highest obesity rates of all states for youth ages 10-17. Health M Powers, a community based health and physical education initiative, works with both elementary and middle schools in over 15 Georgia school districts to create model health and physical education programs.

This project aims to: 1) increase the percentage of students who engage in daily moderate to vigorous physical activity; 2) increase the percentage of students in grades 4-8 who can pass FITNESSGRAM standards; 3) increase the number of students who eat healthy; 4) increase the number of staff engaged in continuous improvement of the physical education and nutrition program; and 5) engage parents in promoting nutrition and physical activity at home, including limiting screen time.

An evaluation of a sub-set of 13 schools in seven districts serving 10,166 students from 2004-2007 was completed in 2007 and again in 2009, two years after the program was completed to identify those portions of the program that had been institutionalized in the participating schools. Results at the end of the three year intervention included: • The number of schools conducting fitness testing progressed from 4 to all 13 schools; All elementary schools demonstrated an increase in the numbers of students achieving fitness levels in the healthy fitness zone; • All 13 schools established a School Health Council that improved policies and programming. Results from the 2-year follow-up evaluation after Health MPowers no longer provided services showed that twelve schools had institutionalized most programs