Iowa Bicycle Summit: Safe Routes to School

Tue January 19 2010
Posted Jan 19, 2010
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There will be multiple presentations and discussions about different Safe Routes to School success stories and opportunities for future programming and event planning that revolves around walking and biking to schools. Lynette Anderson, from the Northeast Iowa Food and Fitness, will discuss the 6 county region that is on the ground floor of a movement to improve the policies, practices, and systems that determine how food arrives on our tables and how NE Iowa communities can grow opportunities for physical activity for all. Melissa Stovers, from Imagine Grinnell, will present about the Grinnell-Newburgh School district. They joined schools from across the world to celebrate International Walk-to-School Day with the contests encouraging all of the families, students, and school administrators to take a break from driving and walk or bike to school. Patty Guevara, from Scavo, Des Moines Alternative High School, will provide a wonderful example of how she started a bike club with funding from a grant provided by the Michael Jordan Foundation a little over a year ago, called “Bookin' on Bikes”. The high school had no physical education program at their school and had lots of students with major obstacles to overcome in order to just get their education. With some help from the Bike Collective and other great cycling souls, “Bookin' on Bikes” was born! Traci Kepley, from Live Healthy Iowa, will talk about Iowa's “Go the Distance Day”. It's a free one-day event for Iowa Schools. Its purpose is to show Iowa youth that physical activity is fun and makes them feel good; increase public awareness of youth physical inactivity; and inform the public that physical education programs are needed in our schools.