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Walking and Rolling to School |
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Tuesday, 02 October 2012 |
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October is International Walk to School Month and Island Trails Network has teamed up with the Kodiak School District to promote a “Walk and Roll” program for various schools. Michelle LeBeau is the lead consultant for safe routes to school for ITN and said the program is a way to get kids and their parents engaged in alternative transportation methods.
-- (Walk and Roll 1 :44 “And the program is simple,
on October 15 students can go to their teacher and ask for their own
punch card. They’ll get their own punch card that they can keep
themselves or leave in their classroom if their teacher allows it and
each time they walk or bike to school they can go up to the greeting
teacher and either ask them to circle or punch a hole in their card to
indicate that they walked or biked to school. And if they completed all
five of their punches they can return that same card back to their
teacher, even if they don’t complete all five punches they can still
return that card back to their teachers, and all of those punches get
tallied up for the schools. And we’re wanting to reward all the students
that make the effort and walk and bike to school and also the classroom
that can tally up the most bike trip or walking adventures to school.”)
LeBeau said there are a variety of prizes for students with the most
punch cards and the hope is to plan a party for the class with the most
punches. She said the program is a stepping stone for a larger goal of
making Kodiak a safer place to bike or walk.
-- (Walk and Roll
2 :48 “Island Trails Network applied for some grant funding
about a year ago from the state of Alaska safe routes to school program.
And they were awarded a competitive grant, we partnered with the school
district at the time, healthy tomorrows and a couple of other community
groups as well. The essence of the grant is a planning grant so we’re
spending the first year focusing on figuring out what are some of the
barriers or challenges students within Kodiak find if they want to bike
or walk to school. So we’re really focusing on feedback from the
community, really getting an idea of what some of those challenges are.
And the final product will be a planning document that will really
outline recommendations for improvements, ways that we can maybe
increase lighting, do a better job clearing sidewalks with snow, do a
better job making kids feel comfortable or parents feel comfortable with
their students walking to school.”)
She said the hope is that
the “walk and roll” program will generate those needed comments so ITN
and the school district will know what should be done and what funding
they should look for in months and years to come to make Kodiak safer
for bikers and walkers.
Lucy Murdock is the health and wellness
coordinator for the district and said “walk and roll” will begin October
15 and run until October 26. Majority of the schools that participate
in the safe routes to school program, a statewide program for elementary
and middle schools, will participate in the punch card incentive.
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(Walk and Roll 3 : 24 “Unfortunately one of the schools is
not going to be a part of it just because one of the big barriers to
that school is that they don’t have a lot of options, safe routes to
school. So that’s a huge insight for us and safe routes to school is to
realize what some of those barriers are, just he simple fact that they
don’t have sidewalks going to their school.”)
That school is
North Star Elementary. Murdock said those barriers are already being
taken into account, but still encourages those that can participate to
do so.
-- (Walk and Roll 4 : 44 “It’s so important to
promote these programs because it provides incentives for parents and
families and children to get in that extra exercise and needed exercise
for kids. Every child has so much energy and this just provides a way
for them to move before school and studies show that getting that energy
up before the start of a school day provides kids with lasting energy
it gets their brain going. So it’s really important that kids get the
opportunity to get their heart going for concentration and productivity
and an all around healthy heart.”)
As the event approaches
posters will be hung at schools and throughout the community. Both women
said community members should be aware that more kids may be on the
roads and please exercise caution.
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