Schools in Brevard, Orange and Volusia counties will be celebrating International Walk to School Day on Wednesday, Oct. 9.
The day is set aside to give children, parents, school teachers and community leaders an opportunity to be part of a global event as they celebrate the benefits of walking, according to the International Walk to School website.
In the United States, walkers began celebrating in 1997 with hopes of creating communities that are safe places to walk. Last year more than 4,000 groups walked in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, according to the National Center for Safe Routes to School, which coordinates efforts nationwide.
In Central Florida, the Walking School Bus, a national project that has its local base at the University of Central Florida 麻豆精品 S檚 Center for Public and Nonprofit Management, will participate in the day through its ongoing walking programs at Sybelia Elementary in Maitland, Eagle 麻豆精品 S檚 Nest in Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 Metro West and Robert Louis Stevenson School of the Arts on Merritt Island among others.
Each program has been tailored to meet the school 麻豆精品 S檚 needs. UCF students mapped the route, presented the program to parents and helped launch the walking program at Stevenson, for example, while UCF is conducting research about the benefits of walking for the fourth-year program at Sybelia. At Eagle 麻豆精品 S檚 Nest, UCF helped volunteers from the non-profit Soldiers to School organization get the program rolling. Parents and community members have responded with volunteers and enthusiasm. Recently, Spirit Elementary in Deltona also joined UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 Walking School Bus program.
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Administrators at Stevenson Elementary, a school of choice in Brevard County, were looking for a way to help alleviate potential traffic problems when budget cuts eliminated buses to the school.
The school sits next to Kelly Park, and Principal Michael Corneau thought he could somehow use that park to help offset traffic while keeping students safe. That 麻豆精品 S檚 when he connected with the Walking School Bus.
麻豆精品 S淚t is a great opportunity because we hit the challenge on many different levels, 麻豆精品 S� he said. 麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 great for kids to get the chance to walk. Parents don 麻豆精品 S檛 have to sit in 麻豆精品 S� shall we say 麻豆精品 S� a challenging car loop, and with the volunteers we keep the kids safe from point A to point C. 麻豆精品 S�
Ten parent volunteers line a pathway from a drop off point in Kelly Park to the school 麻豆精品 S檚 back fields. There, school staff members meet the children and walk them to the main campus. Heavy backpacks, musical instruments and other large items are loaded into a golf cart that is driven to the school so children don 麻豆精品 S檛 hurt their backs on the 戮-mile walk. Local business IAP Worldwide Services donated the cart when its owner heard about the program. The principal hopes to recruit more volunteers from the community as the year unfolds.
麻豆精品 S淭he UCF students made the presentation to my parent group, 麻豆精品 S� Corneau said. 麻豆精品 S淭hen we pitched it before and during registration. We started with about 10 students on day one, and this week we have about 85. The kids love it because they get to hang out with their friends on the walk. The parents love the ease and I like it because I know my kids are safe, getting some exercise and we 麻豆精品 S檙e being good neighbors. 麻豆精品 S�
At Lake Sybelia, UCF is helping by monitoring the walking and conducting some research to see the impact it can have on children 麻豆精品 S檚 health.
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Lake Sybelia聽 has two routes starting in different neighborhoods. About 15-20 students participate in each route with three to six escorts. One parent usually pulls a little red wagon piled with backpacks so the walkers can proceed unrestricted, Paradise said.
In Orlando 麻豆精品 S檚 Metro West, UCF is helping the volunteers from Soldiers to Scholars (). The organization helps veterans get four-year degrees while the veterans help their local communities by volunteering for different projects. The Walking School Bus was a perfect fit. Volunteers from Soldiers to Scholars meet at an apartment complex on Kirkham Road that is home to many school children. Together they walk the mile and half to a park near the school. From there they watch the children walk through the school 麻豆精品 S檚 front doors.
UCF mapped the route, provided reflective vests and whistles to the soldier volunteers, and helped spread the word about the program. There are about 35 students who make the walk each morning and afternoon.
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The UCF team is already in discussions with several schools, and UCF students in an urban and regional planning class are busy mapping out potential routes in those areas so they can be ready to go once agreements have been reached. The routes are being mapped with safety features in mind such as: availability of sidewalks, width of sidewalk, distance between street and sidewalk, speed limits on streets, and speed mitigation/traffic-calming devices such as speed bumps. Funding for the Walking School Bus is provided by several grants including money from the Florida Department of Transportation.
麻豆精品 S淚t 麻豆精品 S檚 a feel-good project that really has no losers, 麻豆精品 S� Pehlke said. 麻豆精品 S淚 mean, we 麻豆精品 S檙e keeping kids safe from getting hit by cars and strangers, we 麻豆精品 S檙e helping them get their exercise and we 麻豆精品 S檙e helping the environment by giving parents a good option to driving to school. Who can be against that? 麻豆精品 S�