PHIT America GO! Grants Impact 400,000+ Kids
July 10, 2019
California, MD – July 9, 2019 – PHIT America’s efforts to get more kids moving and physically active keep growing.
PHIT America is proud to announce that since September 2015, PHIT America GO! Grants. have been awarded to 730 elementary school P.E. programs in 39 states which have provided physical activity outlets for more than 400,000 elementary school children in the U.S. More than 100,000 kids have been introduced to an active lifestyle in the past year. To date, the GO! Grant funds have been raised from the private sector. Also, the GO! Grants program has been conducted with the support of longtime partner KIDS in the GAME.
PHIT America GO! Grants help schools that are in desperate need of gear, programming or training for physical activity programs. PHIT America GO! Grants range in size from $1,000 to $5,000 per school. Every PHIT America GO! Grant is focused on providing assistance to schools which want to help students improve their motor skills, reduce obesity, and enhance fitness.
And, for elementary schools that are willing to start a before-school walking and running initiative, PHIT America has a new program. It’s called AMPED — a new school-based walking and running program designed to amplify education with exercise. AMPED will get children physically active every day before school. To date, 82 elementary schools in 24 states currently conduct the AMPED program, which has impacted nearly 44,000 school children.
“Parents, teachers and administrators love what is happening in their schools with GO! Grants,” said Natalie Hummel, Executive Director/Co-Founder, KIDS in the GAME. “These grants are making a big impact on the lives of the students at the schools which are receiving the funding. With more GO! Grant-funded P.E. programs, we are seeing children with increased attention span, positive moods, and improved school camaraderie.”
“We are proud to play a role in getting more young school children physically active and playing sports during the school day,” stated Jim Baugh, Founder of PHIT America. “The GO! Grants are an investment in our national campaign to fight and reverse the ‘Inactivity Pandemic.’ Research confirms the huge benefits that exercise at school has on the academic, physical and emotional health of school children. The PHIT America GO! Grants are changing lives.”
Sadly, the growing number of physically inactive children in the U.S. truly underscores the need for P.E. in schools, which, sadly, is provided in just 48 percent of American schools. As the emphasis on P.E. has dropped in the U.S., so has the level of physical activity among children. According to the CDC, less than 10 percent of U.S. children are physically active to healthy standards, which is at least three days a week.
To emphasize the importance of P.E. in our schools, PHIT America has produced a series of documentaries – entitled Creating Healthier & Smarter Kids: The Power of P.E. — which showcase the significant academic benefits of P.E. and the downsides of physical inactivity. The videos are available at Videos.PHITAmerica.org.
Interested companies and foundations that want to help reverse the ‘Inactivity Pandemic’ should contact PHIT America at [email protected].
Founded in January 2013, PHIT America is a non-profit campaign focused on overcoming the severe ramifications of the ‘Inactivity Pandemic’ through three strategic approaches – education, supporting school-based activity programs, and advocating – which will get Americans, especially our youth, more active, fit and healthy. Companies or individuals interested in helping PHIT America fight the ‘Inactivity Pandemic’ should contact PHIT America at [email protected].