2011 Safe Routes to School Award: Call for Applications

Stay tuned! The recipient of the 2011 Safe Routes to School Award will be announced in December 2011.

The 2011 Award will recognize outstanding achievement by a local Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program that has greatly improved the safety or increased the number of elementary and/or middle school students who walk and bicycle to school. Additional consideration will be given to applicants who have made active transportation to/from school an integral part of the school’s culture over time.

The Safe Routes to School Award recognizes SRTS programs for outstanding achievement in improving the health and well-being of an entire generation of school children. The Award is given annually by the National Center for Safe Routes to School to an exemplary SRTS program in the United States.

The application deadline was Wednesday, October 26, 2011, at 5:00 pm Eastern Time.

Eligibility

To be eligible for consideration for the 2011 Safe Routes to School Award, applicants must:

  • Demonstrate success in improving the safety or increasing the number of elementary and/or middle school students walking and bicycling to school;
  • Be part of a functioning Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program currently in place; and
  • Have benefitted from federal SRTS funds in one of the following ways:
    • Have received federal funds from a state DOT SRTS program for infrastructure improvements and/or non-infrastructure projects such as encouragement and education; AND/OR
    • Have received support from a state-sponsored, federally-funded SRTS Resource Center for non-infrastructure projects such as encouragement and education.

Applications can be submitted by individuals or organizations such as schools, local SRTS programs, community organizations, local governmental departments, state SRTS coordinators, SRTS advocates, state Departments of Transportation, Governor’s Highway Safety Offices, Tribal governments, FHWA Division representatives and NHTSA Regional Offices.

Evaluation Criteria

2011 Safe Routes to School Award applications will be evaluated on the following four (4) criteria:

  1. Goals and activities of SRTS program.
  2. Results and successes of SRTS program implementation.
  3. Specific activities that contributed to the results and successes.
  4. Importance/impact of federal funding to the program's implementation and successes.

 

Examples of successes MUST include one of the following:

  • Improved safety for walking and bicycling to school, and/or
  • More children walking and bicycling to school.

Additional examples of successes may include but are not limited to:

  • SRTS program sustainability, which includes making active transportation to/from school an integral part of the school’s culture;
  • New partnerships that were created or increased participation that was generated among community stakeholders through a SRTS program or project; and/or
  • Additional benefits such as improvements regarding:
    • Student academic performance,
    • Student behavior,
    • Physical fitness or obesity rates, and/or
    • Parental participation in school activities.

Examples of activities to improve safety, increase participation, and promote program sustainability include but are not limited to:

  • Reducing traffic congestion
  • Lowering traffic speeds
  • Completing infrastructure to support walking and/or bicycling
  • Reducing pedestrian and/or bicyclist injuries
  • Addressing neighborhood safety concerns
  • Developing community support for pedestrian and/or bicycle facilities
  • Creating and/or sustaining student desire to walk or bicycle to school
  • Overcoming parental resistance
  • Improving parental involvement in school
  • Improving low academic performance
  • Creating awareness regarding physical fitness, obesity, and/or diabetes
  • Implementing policy change:
    • Creating policies that support safe walking/bicycling to school
    • Overturning policies that discourage or prevent safe walking/bicycling

Federal funding includes indirect funding such as support received from a state-sponsored, federally-funded SRTS Resource Center.

Optional: Letters of Recommendation

A one-page letter of recommendation from a State SRTS Coordinator or a supporting organization may be include as part of the application. All letters should be emailed as attachments to info@saferoutesinfo.org, with the subject line: SRTS Award Letter of Recommendation for INSERT NAME OF PROGRAM.

Application Process

The application deadline was Wednesday, October 26, 2011. Applications received by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on October 26 will be considered for the Award.

Please note: The only information that will be considered by the award committee is the contents of the completed application.

Review Process

Applications for the 2011 Safe Routes to School Award will be reviewed by an Award Committee comprised of representatives from the National Center for Safe Routes to School, America Walks, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Governors Highway Safety Association, Institute of Transportation Engineers, the Safe Routes to School National Partnership and other organizations. The recipient of the 2011 Safe Routes to School Award will be announced in December 2011. An award ceremony will occur at a date and venue to be determined.

Questions

Specific questions should be directed to Pam Barth, barth@hsrc.unc.edu or (919) 962-8717.