NikeGO Head Start Comes to Falls Church, VA to Fight Childhood Obesity Epidemic
Falls Church One of 12 New Cities For NikeGO Head Start Campaign in 2006-2007 FALLS CHURCH, Va., Jan. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Falls Church is the lateststop for NikeGO Head Start, a first-of-its-kind initiative to get kidsphysically active starting at a young age. Nike and the National Head StartAssociation (NHSA) along with SPARK (Sports, Play and Active Recreation forKids) announced today that Falls Church is one of 12 new sites where theprogram will be offered in 2006-2007. The NikeGO Head Start training forFalls Church is taking place through the Higher Horizons Head Start andwill be conducted at the Mason District Government Center at 6507 ColumbiaPike in Annandale, VA. The training will take place on Friday, January 26,2007 starting at 8:30 a.m. Higher Horizons Head Start Director Mary Ann Cornish said: "We aredelighted to be one of the Head Start programs selected for the NikeGO HeadStart Training. Preventing and treating childhood obesity requires entirefamily involvement and that's what Head Start's all about! This trainingwill support our efforts to encourage healthy habits and behaviors. AtHigher Horizons Head Start, we will create a healthy-weight environmentwhich includes incorporating exercise and physical activity into the dailyroutine. The Head Start team at Higher Horizons looks forward to successfulimplementation of the training. Head Start staff, children and parents willwork together and support each other's efforts." NHSA President and CEO Sarah Greene said: "Childhood obesity has been agrowing problem in our country over the past few years. The best time toreach these children and their parents is when they are young so they canlearn the importance of physical activity so it will become part of theirlifestyle as they grow. Head Start has always been focused on the entirefamily, not just the kids, as an important component of their education anddevelopment. The NikeGO Head Start Initiative teaches parents along withtheir kids so physical activity becomes a family thing." In its first two years, NikeGO Head Start has trained 320 teachers ineight cities reaching an estimated 30,000 Head Start preschoolers. Theprogram currently operates in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington,DC, Orlando, Anchorage, Memphis, and Portland. The additional 13 cities arebeing selected primarily based on the prevalence of childhood obesity amongpreschoolers. NHSA's Board Chairman Ron Herndon said this initiative builds on aseven-year relationship between Nike and the National Head StartAssociation. Currently the largest private funder of NHSA, Nike is issuinga series of one-year grants, with specific performance requirements,totaling $2.5 million over five years. Herndon is the principle responsiblefor Nike's long term commitment to Head Start. NikeGO Head Start has made noticeable gains in the battle againstchildhood obesity over the first two years of the program in the eightcities it has served. In addition to battling childhood obesity, the NikeGOHead Start Initiative was created to encourage young children and theadults in their lives to engage in movement activities every day and to develop alifelong commitment to physical activity and a healthy lifestyle. NikeGO Head Start understands how parents can play a critical role inraising healthy children and provides them with the resources to replicatethe program's activities in the home. In addition to receiving the Playbookand SPARK training, participating Head Start sites will receive Nikedonated equipment necessary to implement the program -- includingparachutes, easy-to-catch balls, beanbags and balance beams. About NHSA The National Head Start Association (
http://www.nhsa.org) is a privatenot-for-profit membership organization dedicated exclusively to meeting theneeds of Head Start children and their families. It represents more than 1million children, 200,000 staff and 2,600 Head Start programs in the UnitedStates. The Association provides support for the entire Head Startcommunity by advocating for policies that strengthen services to Head Startchildren and their families; by providing extensive training andprofessional development to Head Start staff; and by developing anddisseminating research, information, and resources that enrich Head Startprogram delivery. About NikeGO NikeGO is Nike's signature U.S. community affairs initiative and thecompany's long-term commitment to getting kids more physically active. Theprogram's mission is to increase physical activity in youths, offering themthe support and motivation to become physically active, stay healthy andhave fun. In its most recent fiscal year, Nike contributed more than $10.5million in cash and products and served more than 150,000 kids through itsprograms and partnerships. Visit
http://www.nikego.com for additionalinformation. About SPARK SPARK (Sports, Play and Active Recreation for Kids) is a research-basedphysical activity program dedicated to creating, implementing, andevaluating programs that promote lifelong wellness. Visit
http://www.sparkpe.org or call 1-800SPARKPE or e-mail:
spark@sparkpe.org for more information
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