ChildObesity180 Awards Winners of $500,000 Children’s Physical Activity Contest
ChildObesity180 names two technology Grand Prize winners and nine Regional school program winners; National school winners to be announced in June 2012
Boston, Mass. – May, 22, 2012 – ChildObesity180 today announced eleven winners of their nationwide innovation contest. The competition was designed to identify and reward the most creative, impactful, and scalable school-based programs and technologies to promote children’s physical activity.
The Active Schools Acceleration Project (ASAP), a ChildObesity180 initiative, launched the competition in February 2012 in a commitment with the Partnership for a Healthier America. First Lady Michelle Obama encouraged participation in the competition with a call for applications via a video message.
Teachers, schools, and school districts submitted their school-based physical activity programs to the “School Programs” category, while the “Technology Innovation” category invited developers, inventors, and entrepreneurs to demonstrate how existing or emerging technologies could be used to inspire kids to be physically active. A panel of experts representing various fields judged the entries. A complete list of judges is available at www.ActiveSchoolsASAP.org.
“School Programs” Category Regional Winners of $25,000 each:
- Corona-Norco Unified School District – Norco, Calif. – West Region
- El Paso Independent School District – El Paso, Texas – Southwest Region
- Hilton Head Island Elementary School for the Creative Arts – Hilton Head, S.C. – Atlantic Region
- Meadowview Elementary School – Farmington, Minn. – Midwest Region
- Miami-Dade County Public Schools – Miami, Fla. – Southeast Region
- Harlem and Washington Heights / Inwood (PS 4, PS 102, PS 128, PS 123, PS 152, PS/IS 180, PS/IS 206, PS/IS 210) – New York, N.Y. – New York/New Jersey Region
- Natick Public Schools – Natick, Mass. – Northeast Region
- Overland Elementary School – Los Angeles, Calif. – West Region
- Red Hawk Elementary – Erie, Colo. – Central/Mountain Region
“Technology Innovation” Category Grand Prize Winners of $50,000 each:
- The Walking Classroom – www.thewalkingclassroom.org
- Sqord – www.sqord.com
Christina Economos, PhD, Vice-Chair and Director of ChildObesity180, Associate Professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, and a leading researcher in childhood obesity prevention said, “These innovators show how teachers, parents, and technology developers are creatively increasing physical activity in schools. They are leading the way toward a real shift in the nation’s approach to physical activity.”
Each of the regional “School Programs” category winners will receive $25,000 to further advance health and wellness programming in their school or district. On June 13, 2012 in Washington, D.C., two of these nine winners will be chosen as National Winners and their award will increase to $100,000 each. The two “Technology Innovation” Grand Prize winners will receive $50,000 each to advance their technologies.
Working closely with leading researchers and expert staff at Tufts University and ChildObesity180, National “School Programs” and “Technology Innovation” winners will participate in pilot studies to expand their programs and technologies to schools of different types, sizes, and geographies across the country.
Peter Dolan, Chair of ChildObesity180 says, “The competition’s winning programs and technologies are models that can help us reverse the childhood obesity epidemic. We are grateful for the support of thirteen of America’s leading health plans for this competition. With them as our partners, we are recognizing innovation champions and identifying opportunities to bring solutions to scale.”
www.ActiveSchoolsASAP.org
About ChildObesity180
Active Schools Acceleration Project (ASAP) is an initiative of ChildObesity180, an organization committed to fostering cross-sector collaboration to reverse the trend of childhood obesity within one generation’s time. The ChildObesity180 membership is comprised of national leaders from the public, nonprofit, academic, and private sectors who are using their reach and expertise to drive an integrated national strategy to prevent childhood obesity. The organization is chaired by Peter Dolan, former CEO of Bristol-Myers Squibb. Leading Tufts University obesity researcher Dr. Christina Economos serves as vice-chair and director and Dr. Miriam Nelson, a Professor at the Friedman School, is the co-director. Founded in 2009, ChildObesity180 is conducted in collaboration with Tufts University. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the JPB Foundation are strategic funders. The Innovation Competition is funded by a consortium of the nation’s leading health plans.
www.childobesity180.org