School Programs and Technology Innovations That Motivate Children to Be Physically Active

Posted by on February 19, 2012

New National Competition Launched to Identify and Support School Programs and Technology Innovations That Motivate Children to Be Physically Active
Deadline: April 2, 2012

ChildObesity180 and the Partnership for a Healthier America have announced the launch of the Active Schools Acceleration Project, a national competition to identify and reward effective school-based programs and technological innovations that promote physical activity for children.

The ASAP competition will award a total of $500,000 to schools with the most innovative, impactful, and cost-effective physical activity programs, and to technology developers who create new ways of using technology to promote increased physical activity among youth. In addition to monetary awards, top winners will participate in funded pilot studies aimed at expanding their programs’ reach and impact.

Entries are invited in two categories — one for school-based programs and one for technology innovations.

The school program category is for programs that target children between the ages of 5 and 12 and are already being deployed in a school setting. Ideas for programs not yet developed will not be considered. Entries will be accepted from teams of two to six individuals from public, private, charter, and parochial schools. A school’s physical activity program may be any curriculum, activity, environmental modification, event, or other initiative that promotes quality school-time physical activity among the target population. Each school team must include a team leader who is an employee of the school or district where the program is currently deployed. Additional team members should be individuals with some connection to the program such as students, parents, teachers, coaches, and volunteers. The competition will award prizes of $25,000 to up to ten regional school program winners, and prizes of $100,000 to up to two national school program winners.

The technology innovation category seeks to identify technological innovations, including both newly developed technologies and unique applications of existing technologies, that can motivate kids to get at least sixty minutes of moderate to vigorous activity every day. “Technology” may include but is not limited to devices, tracking and measurement systems, software applications and platforms, innovative uses of social media, gaming, smart phones, mobile phones, and more. These technologies may be practical for increasing physical activity in many settings and among students of all ages; however, all entries must be able to demonstrate at least one application of the technology that could be feasible and impactful within an elementary school environment. Entrants to the technology innovation category should form a team of two to six individuals age 18 or older to present their concept. Two grand prizes of $50,000 will be awarded in the technology innovation category to execute a school-based pilot study featuring the winning technology.

Complete competition details and the application portal are available at the ASAP Web site.

http://www.activeschoolsasap.org/