Special Report to Blowing Rock News from Watauga County Schools. November 18, 2011. BOONE -- You won't see a gaggle of High Country first graders trekking along I-40 through Oklahoma on their way to California, but students at Hardin Park School have accepted a challenge to walk the distance from Boone to San Francisco -- 2,777 miles -- as part of a "Fuel Up to Play 60" grant recently awarded to the school. Photos courtesy of Watauga County Schools

“The formal name of this specific Fuel Up grant is Sweep Across the States for Health and Fitness, and the purpose is to encourage students to increase their level of physical activity,” said Hardin Park Principal Mary Smalling.  “We want students to know it’s important to challenge themselves to be physically healthy as well as to succeed in the classroom.  This program provides a great way to do that as part of a team, and it does it without the competitive pressures or scheduling issues that can keep some children from participating in organized athletics.”

At Friday’s pep rally kick-off for the challenge, students watched an encouraging video from Daniel Kilgore, a former student teacher at Hardin Park who is now an offensive lineman with the San Francisco 49ers professional football team.   Students in each grade also chose the name of an NFL team in a drawing and will use that name for their grade’s team.  Earth Fare provided a healthy snack at the end of the event to help students start off on the right track.

Based on an average grade level with 85 team members, each person will need to cover about 33 miles for the team to meet its goal. While running and walking will be the simplest ways to accumulate mileage, there are formulas to convert time spent in other physical activities into miles that can be counted toward the team’s progress.

In addition to the grade level teams, there will be one team composed of school personnel  who are not assigned to a specific grade, including school administrators, office personnel, art and music teachers, and school counselors.  This group is currently referred to as the “classless” team but members are quick to point out that this does not mean they lack class.  Regardless of status, this smaller all-adult team will have to work extra hard to cover the same 2,777 miles as the grade level teams, but Principal Smalling says she is determined they will meet that goal.

The progress of each team will be tracked on a large U.S. map that will hang in the cafeteria for the rest of the year.  A changing list of suggestions for improving health and fitness will be posted there to encourage students and school employees to adopt better habits for eating, exercise, and health care.

Special events and rewards will be used to keep teams interested and motivated. Around the midpoint, there will be a "training table" activity where students will learn about high nutrition foods and will be encouraged to sample healthy but unfamiliar foods.  In addition, more videos from 49er Daniel Kilgore will be shown, and hikes and other activities will be offered at special locations to help students rack up increased mileage.  Rewards students can win include wristbands, footballs, and t-shirts, and the school is seeking community support to provide additional incentives.  As a final reward, teams that reach the 2,777 mile goal will participate in a special Super Bowl party.

The Sweep Across America grant to Hardin Park brought the school $3,500.  The grant’s emphasis on physical activity and fitness complements a “Fuel Up to Play 60” grant last year that had a greater emphasis on healthy eating habits.  Last year’s grant helped establish the school’s Breakfast Café to help increase the number of middle school students who start their day with a healthy breakfast.

Hardin Park School serves 770 students and is the largest elementary/middle school in Watauga County.   It is rated a NC School of Distinction by the NC Department of Public Instruction.

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