By Luz Maria Castellanos
Partnership for LA Schools
Obesity is one of today’s major health issues. That’s especially true in inner city communities where underlying inequities in socioeconomic status have led to an overrepresentation of minorities in low-income neighborhoods that tend to promote unhealthy diets and sedentary lifestyles.
Carver Middle School is now one step closer to reducing obesity among its student body through the donation of a fitness center by Sound Body Sound Mind. Physical education teachers at the school banned together to submit a grant to receive a new fitness center to complement the various other programs Principal Luz Cotto has implemented at the school.
The new state of the art fitness center will provide students with a comprehensive physical fitness program to promote self-confidence and healthy lifestyle choices.
Principal Cotto has created a proactive health and fitness program at her school unlike any other in the area in order to make real changes in the way students, and by extension the community, think about health and fitness.
Carver is tackling obesity using several methods:
– The school began a special PE program that goes above and beyond the basic instruction by providing PE teachers with professional development on Guided Language Acquisition Design (GLAD) Strategies and supporting PE teachers in implementing the Pearson Learning Team model.
– The school has invested in a magnificent garden where every day students are brought to learn more about the foods they eat and the importance of eating fresh fruits and vegetables as part of a balanced diet.
– The donation of a state of the art fitness center, rounds out the school’s health and fitness program, and will help students develop a life-long practice for a healthy body and mind.
The Partnership for Los Angeles Schools was founded in 2007 as a collaboration between the City of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Unified School District to turn around LA’s lowest performing schools and to create a model for doing so district wide.
The Partnership currently manages 22 schools with nearly 16,500 students and 1,500 employees.
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