Safe Routes Matters, November/December 2008

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In this Issue:

Boulder School Wins Oberstar Award

Bear Creek Elementary

Students at Bear Creek Elementary walk to school in organized school buses throughout the year.

Bear Creek Elementary School in Boulder, Colo., is the recipient of the 2008 James L. Oberstar Award. The school's Safe Routes to School program involves 70 percent of students in walking and bicycling activities throughout the year.

"All the applications were outstanding, but Bear Creek's goals and achievements mirrored Congressman Oberstar's intentions for sustained change in families' travel habits when the Safe Routes to School legislation was passed," said Lauren Marchetti, Director of the National Center for Safe Routes to School.

"We are trying to create a new culture of daily car-free habits in this young generation," explains Vivian Kennedy, parent volunteer at Bear Creek Elementary. A City of Boulder study conducted during the first year of the school's Car-Free Commute program (2007–2008) showed a 36 percent reduction in cars and corresponding traffic congestion. During the program's second year, students accrued 4,800 miles from 6,600 Car-Free Commute trips in a single month (September 2008).

Bear Creek Elementary School, one of the first in the country to have walking school buses throughout the school year, keeps track of students' travel through monthly tallies. Kent Cruger, principal at Bear Creek Elementary, challenges students daily with his own examples of car-free travel.

"We are grateful for the support of district personnel, the Safe Routes Program, the City of Boulder, and especially our parent community at Bear Creek," said Principal Kent Cruger. "This team effort has had an incredibly positive impact on our students."

"I am extremely proud of the Safe Routes to School program at Bear Creek Elementary," says Congressman James L. Oberstar, after whom the award is named. "The students, parents, faculty, and staff have given us an outstanding example of how we can change the lifestyle habits of an entire generation. I heartily congratulate the Bear Creek community for its achievements and would like to see it become a model for Safe Routes to School programs across the country."

The award is named for Congressman Oberstar (D-MN) to honor his dedication to American school children as the pioneer for the National Safe Routes to School Program. Oberstar, current Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, sponsored the Safe Routes to School legislation that strives to create safe settings to enable more parents and children to walk and bicycle to school.

Organizations that promote pedestrian and bicycle safety offered their expertise in reviewing the applications received by the National Center for Safe Routes to School. America Walks, the Safe Routes to School National Partnership, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, the Governors Highway Safety Association, the Institute of Transportation Engineers, the National Center for Bicycling and Walking and Toole Design Group all were among the organizations that assisted the National Center for Safe Routes to School in the selection process.

The 2008 Oberstar Award sought to recognize outstanding achievement by a school or community in establishing a Safe Routes to School program with Federal funding. Safe Routes to School (SRTS) programs make it safer for children to walk and bicycle to school and encourage more children to do so. The Oberstar Award is given annually by the National Center for Safe Routes to School to an exemplary SRTS program in the United States.

Please see entire case study on Bear Creek Elementary School at http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/case_studies/pdfs/CO.bearcreek.pdf.

2nd Safe Routes to School National Conference Call for Proposals

Learn how Safe Routes to School programs across the country are changing the habits of an entire generation of schoolchildren and putting thousands of families two steps ahead of health and environmental concerns at the 2nd Safe Routes to School National Conference:

August 19–21, 2009
Hilton Portland
Portland, Oregon
Please keep checking http://www.saferoutesconference.org for registration information.
There will be a pre-conference workshop on health issues.

Call for proposals — Feb. 2, 2009 deadline

Conference theme is "Two Steps Ahead." Presentations and posters should exemplify Safe Routes to School programs' ability to address a range of issues that affect our society, and give schoolchildren the tools to change habits and stay two steps ahead of health issues, environmental problems and traffic congestion. The conference will offer 90-minute workshops and interactive 180-minute training opportunities that allow for more in-depth discussion and hands-on events. Presenters should focus their messages on a single age group (K–5, middle school) or geographic location (urban, suburban, rural).

Any individual, organization, business, non-profit or public agency that is actively engaged in Safe Routes to School and can demonstrate experiential success is invited to submit a proposal for presentation and/or posters.

Key subjects include, but are not limited to:

  • Advocacy
  • Diverse communities
  • Overcoming challenges
  • Training
  • Evaluation
  • Community development
  • Leadership
  • The five E's
  • Encouraging youth

Thematic tracks during the conference will include:

  • Transportation, infrastructure and safety
  • Empowering families and youth
  • Education and encouragement
  • Health and evaluation
  • Growing the SRTS movement

Additional instructions and online forms will be posted online. To submit your presentation or poster proposal, please visit http://www.saferoutesconference.org.

The Safe Routes to School National Conference is co-presented by the National Center for Safe Routes to School and the Safe Routes to School National Partnership, with hosting and coordination by the Bicycle Transportation Alliance in Portland, Oregon.

Walk to School Survey Results

Thousands of families walked to school together in October 2008 as part of Walk to School Day

More than 600 Walk to School event coordinators answered the National Center for Safe Routes to School's call for feedback on communities' experiences with Walk to School 2008. Results from the Walk to School survey will be reported in the National Center's progress report in March. One important advance finding is that 75 percent of Walk to School events led to long-term changes in policies or infrastructure. This is the highest percentage ever reported for this question. Event coordinators also reported on the nature of the changes, leading organizers and motivating factors.

More than 3,000 events officially registered on the U.S. web site, http://www.walktoschool.org. To view the names of registered schools that participated in Walk to School Day in the U.S., please visit http://www.walktoschool.org. For photos of Walk to School activities from the U.S. and around the world, please visit http://www.iwalktoschool.org/photos/index.htm.

To receive additional feedback throughout the year, the National Center for Safe Routes to School has set up a special phone messaging system to record feedback at any time. Please call and leave a message, including your name, city and state at (919) 809-7777.

Safe Routes Snapshots: Promoting Wellness through Walk to School Day in Belle Glade, Florida

Background

Unlike many of the surrounding schools, Gove Elementary in Belle Glade, Fla., is confronted with unique challenges to implement its Safe Routes to School program. Gove Elementary is a Title 1 school in a rural area with many of its students coming from migrant working families. The constant infux and outfow of students can be challenging for teachers, staff and the students. Despite these challenges, Gove Elementary has achieved success in promoting safety and wellness both in the school and in the community.

Details

Families from Gove Elementary had support from Palm Beach County health and safety agencies in celebrating Walk to School Day 2008.

In 2000, Gove Elementary received a $30,000 grant from two sources, the Blum Foundation and the Pew Foundation, to build a fitness area and walking trail. The trail was completed in 2002 and is used by Gove Elementary students, local sports teams, families and the surrounding community. Fueled by this success, Gove Elementary has continued efforts to promote wellness and safety in its community.

In 2000, the school held a Walk to School Day to kick off its Wellness Week. Since 2003, they have hosted two Walk to School Day events each year — one in the fall and one in the spring. The Palm Beach County Health Department and Palm Beach County Food Services were Gove Elementary's first big partners; they provided incentives and volunteers for the event. Since then, participation has rapidly increased and the majority of students participated in this year's fall Walk to School Day event. Gove Elementary staff participated along with community members from the city government and sheriff's and fire departments. To prepare for Walk to School Day, several measures are taken to ensure a safe and fun day for all participants. One month before Walk to School Day, pedestrian safety information is distributed to teachers. One week before, a school assembly is held during the students' physical education class to discuss pedestrian safety. Parents receive a flyer sent home by the school detailing the events and schedule for the day.

The success of Walk to School Day created the hope of increasing participation in the other wellness projects. Now the event kicks off the school's Wellness Week where they hold a Wellness Fair and a community walk. Both of these events attract hundreds of people. The Wellness Fair has grown from seven booths in 2001 to more than 25 booths in 2007. This year, the Palm Beach Sheriff's Department provided bicycle safety information and distributed helmets to the students. More than 100 families in the Glades attended the event.

Gove Elementary hosts a community walk on the Saturday at the end of Wellness Week to promote exercise and safety. This year's event was held at the Belle Glade Marina. Participants walked, jogged or bicycled on the one-, two- and three-mile trails. At this event, three "Heart of the Champion" awards were presented to the non-profit organization, school or business that had the most participants.

The success of these events in part has been attributed to collaboration with a host of community partners, including organizations in the health, medical, law enforcement, safety, and education fields.

Results

Gove Elementary asked a local medical organization to partner with them for Wellness Week, and as a result, the organization awarded the school with $10,000 to continue its SRTS activities. Gove Elementary students also wrote letters and drew pictures, which were sent to the county commissioners as a reminder that the school needs help in creating opportunities for wellness among its families and at the schools.

Gove plans to build upon their past Wellness Week success by adding a third Walk to School Day to their calendar of events and expanding their Wellness Fair.

Since the implementation of SRTS activities, Gove Elementary officials have noticed an increase in children walking and bicycling to school. The bicycle racks, which often were unused, now have at least 10 bicycles parked in it on a daily basis. And the number of children walking to school has increased by 50 percent.

Contact:

Ellen Smith
Gove Elementary
900 S.E. AVE G
Belle Glade, FL 33430
(561) 993-4042
smithell@palmbeach.k12.f.us
http://www.palmbeach.k12.f.us/GoveES/

To read more about Gove Elementary in Belle Glade, Fla., and other case studies, visit http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/case_studies.

Featured Resource: Summary Annual Report

The National Center for Safe Routes to School has grown by leaps and bounds during the last two years – reflecting the growth of the Federal Safe Routes to School program. Today, a strong network of State Coordinators and local program leaders, an engaged group of advocates and an increasing body of knowledge on "what works," are helping the federal program come into its own. The diversified groups that have contributed to the growth of Safe Routes to School will work to ensure its long-term success in improving the lives of schoolchildren across the United States. The National Center has compiled an online version of the accomplishments of SRTS from 2007 to 2008, in preparation for its longer progress report to be released in March 2009.

To access the Summary Annual Report, please visit http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/about/annual_report_0708/.

News Brief

Register for the next Safe Routes Coaching Action Network Webinar

America Walks and the National Center for Safe Routes to School present Safe Routes Coaching Action Network Webinars.

The next topics will be:

SRTS Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Education
January 27, 2009 at 2 p.m. EST
Presenter: Somilia Smith, Project Coordinator, Mayor Daley's Ambassadors
To reserve your webinar seat, go to https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/470361295.

Turning Walk to School Day into a Year-Round Pedestrian Program
February 24, 2009 at 2 p.m. EST
Presenter: Sonja Atkins, Coordinator, Safe Kids Greater Sacramento
To reserve your webinar seat, go to https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/259123751.

For more information on these FREE webinars, please visit http://ww.saferoutesinfo.org/training/can_webinars.cfm.

If you missed any of our webinars, please go to http://ww.saferoutesinfo.org/training/can_webinars.cfm to download the webinar.

The Safe Routes Coaching Action Network Webinars are designed to educate individuals and organizations on topics that will assist with successful outreach efforts. The Network will also offer Webinar participants the option to receive a coaching session from America Walks for assistance with their local outreach efforts. By offering follow-up coaching and education, the Network aims to increase the priority of and resources dedicated towards improving Safe Routes to School efforts.

America Walks is a national coalition of local advocacy groups dedicated to promoting walkable communities. Its members are autonomous grassroots organizations from across the country, each working to improve conditions for walking in their area. The mission of America Walks is to foster the development of community-based pedestrian advocacy groups, to educate the public about the benefits of walking, and, when appropriate, to act as a collective voice for walking advocates.

Eighty percent of Federal SRTS funds awarded

Currently, Safe Routes to School programs throughout the 50 states and the District of Columbia have announced spending commitments for approximately 80 percent of the funds available to states. All 50 states have announced funding for local and/or statewide SRTS programs, and more than 4,000 schools are participating in state-funded SRTS programs.

SRTS in the News

The following is a brief compilation of Safe Routes to School-related news stories from across the country. Web links to the following news stories are time sensitive, so some stories may not be accessible after the initial publication date or may require registration.

Safe Routes to School Program that Works
Share the Ride, San Luis Obispo Regional Rideshare features Oberstar Award winner
12/11/2008
Mount Penn Elementary's Walking School Bus
Walk Bike Berks
12/09/2008
Editorial: Safer Routes To School, Healthier Tennessee Children
The Chattanoogan
12/04/2008
Upgrades to sidewalks Clarke goal
Athens Banner-Herald
11/28/2008
Editorial: Better walking conditions benefit all
Rosemount Town Pages (MN)
11/28/2008
Parents concerned over lack of sidewalks in Taylor
KVUE, Texas
11/24/2008
Natomas parents group wants kids to walk to school
Sacramento News & Review
11/20/2008
Massachusetts honors Olmsted Safe Routes program
Easton Journal and Enterprise
11/18/2008
Why it's not easy to walk to school
Charlotte Observer
11/12/2008

For more news stories relating to Safe Routes to School, please visit the NCSRTS News Room at www.saferoutesinfo.org/news_room/

Safe Routes Matters is a free, online publication of the National Center for Safe Routes to School. No permission is needed to reprint from articles, but attribution is requested. To submit article ideas to Safe Routes Matters, please email news@saferoutesinfo.org.