About Us
The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommend that children and adolescents ages 6 through 17 years should do 60 minutes (1 hour) or more of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity daily. Yet, only 24 percent of children and adolescents in the U.S. reached this recommendation on at least five days per week.
Physical activity and play are essential elements for child development, overall health and a well-rounded education. All schools should be able to provide opportunities for their students to lead active, healthy lives. Unfortunately, competing priorities often limit resources for student wellness. In fact, only six states require physical education through high school and only half of middle and high schools offer all students the opportunity to participate in intramural sports programs or physical activity clubs.
The bottom line? Kids are not participating in enough physical activity, and schools are not prioritizing their responsibility for providing opportunities before, during and after school.
Active Schools operates based on the collective impact framework, designed to tackle deeply entrenched and complex social problems, based on the belief that no single program, policy, organization, or government agency can solve them alone. The Active Schools movement is powered by
More than 90 public and private sector partner organizations
37,113 individual champions
23,223 schools
13,569,925 million students served.
Our Ambassadors
Shannon Miller
Shannon Miller remains the most decorated Olympic gymnast in American history with seven Olympic medals! She is an advocate for the health and wellness of women and children and a mother of two.
"I joined the quest to encourage schools to put more emphasis on physical education in 2007, and my interest in this area has gone up each year. I am proud to serve as an ambassador for the Active Schools movement to ensure that K-12 schools provide physical education and before, during and after school physical activity each day for a total of at least 60 minutes. For many children, school may be their best opportunity to be physically active and to learn to play a variety of sports. Physical activity is an important part of our children’s physical and mental development, so it’s critical that we make it a priority in the school day."
Chris Lineberry
Chris Lineberry is principal at Stanfield Elementary School in Arizona where he and his staff integrate health and wellness throughout the entire curriculum. Dr. Lineberry is co-author of the book, Recess Was My Favorite Subject…Where Did It Go?, and was honored as 2016-17 Principal of the Year by the Arizona Health and Physical Education association.
"I believe health and wellness are as essential a component of the curriculum as reading and math. As an unfortunate result of recent emphasis on grades and testing, we’ve gotten away from seeing the whole child. But research is on our side; it says healthy, active kids perform better and live longer."
Read about Chris’ commitment to school wellness in the National Association of Elementary School Principals’ September/October 2017 issue of Principal magazine
Also, read about Chris "Putting Kids First" in August 2014 Raising Arizona Kids magazine
Cyrus Weinberger
Cyrus Weinberger is former and founding principal of Red Hawk Elementary School in Erie, Colorado As principal at Red Hawk, Cyrus developed a rigorous academic program coupled with a comprehensive wellness program — which now serves as the model for an online course on classroom physical activity integration, funded by the Colorado Health Foundation.
This year, Cyrus opened Soaring Heights PK-8 in the same district. The first Model Active School, Soaring Height students learn through everything kids at others schools do, but with a focus on movement, empathy for others and service.
"Movement and exercise are more than activities at Red Hawk Elementary. They are foundational elements of the school culture. We built physical activity into our plan from day one. Using a rotating daily 'movement calendar,' students gain 40 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity on a daily basis, in addition to scheduled PE class and recess."
Read and Listen to learn more about the work Cyrus is doing at Soaring Heights PK-8
Watch Cyrus’ TED Talk on his All School Movement Program
Also, watch Cyrus present Movement in Schools: My Story of Cultural Change