HOST HEPA Roundup

Here's a roundup of healthy eating and physical activity news from HOST members.

Upcoming Events and Activities

Action for Healthy Kids is gearing up for its annual Every Kid Healthy Week, April 19-25, with ideas for how people can get involved.
Alliance for a Healthier Generation is holding a "Make a Motto Challenge" in honor of National Nutrition Month in March. They want people to "choose one nutritious habit that you have adopted this month, and make a motto to help that habit resonate for the rest of the year." Participants submit the motto at the Alliance website, where it will be tweeted out along with the #MyHealthyMotto hashtag. The Alliance also offers some suggested topic ideas for mottos, along with ways of developing healthy habits that last all year.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is now accepting applications for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Sports Award, “celebrating individuals and organizations that make their communities healthier through sport.”
Salud! America is using its weekly #SaludTues Twitter chat on March 31, 2015 to discuss “How to Bring Fitness Back to Schools & Why This Matters to Latinos.”

Government and Policy

Active Living Research shares a presentation by the Public Health Law Center on “Promoting Physical Activity in Early Care and Education,” where they summarize their 50‐state review of statutes and regulations relating to nutrition, physical activity, and screen time standards for child care.
Safe Routes to School is asking for help in encouraging members of Congress to support the Transportation Alternatives Program Improvement Act, which “helps local communities build sidewalks, crosswalks, bike lanes, trails and more.”
Share Our Strength offers an overview of the Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act that is up for review in September.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded $9 million in grants for childhood obesity intervention programs through colleges and universities in 12 states and Puerto Rico.

Event Recaps

If you missed the National After-School Summit on March 24, you can watch the webcast. The event was organized by HOST members the Afterschool Alliance and the After-School All-Stars, in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.
The National Parks and Recreation Association reports on its first Innovation Lab, held March 12-13 in Miami, Florida, where leaders of Miami-Dade County’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Open Space (PROS) shared their ideas for a master plan for engineering their parks and open spaces with the goal of “equitable health outcomes.”

Research

Education Week and MomsRising.org cover the Afterschool Alliance’s “Kids on the Move” report on how afterschool programs can support children's health and wellness.