Austin Parents Recognized for Environmental Justice Work in Schools
Project addresses skyrocketing asthma rates in African-American communities
 |
| Parents and the principal at Milton Brunson Elementary School accept the Green Flag Award for their environmental justice efforts |
Parents from the Austin Wide Parent Network were recognized with the presentation of the Green Flag Award, a national symbol of environmental health and responsibility in schools, for their work assessing neighborhood schools’ indoor environments.
Parents from Milton Brunson Elementary, Frederick Douglass Academy, Julia Ward Howe School and Francis Scott Key School accepted Green Flags in recognition of their work for environmental justice at school. HSC’s environmental health specialist Claris Olson presented the flags at an awards ceremony on Monday, April 7 at Milton Brunson Elementary School.
The presentation is part of the Austin Environmental Health and Justice Project, a two-year initiative of HSC and COFI (Community Organizing and Family Issues) to educate parents, teachers, administrators, custodians, nurses and students about how the school environment affects their health. The project also builds a network of people at each school to address environmental health issues. Funding for the project is provided by the U.S. EPA.
Parents explained that they decided to work on the project because of their concerns about the growing rates of asthma in the African-American community, and the health hazards that exist in older, deteriorating schools. The number of children suffering from asthma in many of Chicago’s African American communities is more than double the national average. In North Lawndale, for example, more than 23 percent of children suffer from asthma, compared to a national average of 12 percent.
"The kids are having asthma more and more and we don’t know why, so we are looking at the chemicals to see what might be affecting the kids" said Gloria Harris, one of the Austin-Wide Parents who was quoted in a recent issue of Colorlines.
The presentation of the Green Flag Award marks a milestone in the project's progress as parents prepare to move forward with efforts to raise awareness and create changes around environmental health issues in their schools.
HSC's Charity Athletics Team Captain: Peter Sagal of NPR's Wait, Wait . . .Don't Tell Me!
 |
| National Team Captain Peter Sagal (center) with members of the HSC Charity Athletics Team after the 2007 Chicago Marathon |
Peter Sagal, the quick-witted host of NPR’s humorous weekly quiz show, Wait Wait…Don't Tell Me!, and an accomplished marathon runner, is serving as National Team Captain of HSC's 2008 Charity Athletics Team.
"I started running seriously as a mid-life crisis," said Sagal, a father of three young girls. "And we just can’t afford to wait until our kids turn forty before they get inspired to exercise."
"There are so many artificial amusements for children these days, which distract them from what they would naturally love, namely, running around like maniacs," added Sagal. "I'm happy to help bring the message to kids and schools that a little maniacal running around is a great thing."
Make a contribution to support Peter Sagal's run in the 2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon »
Read Peter Sagal's "I'm a Runner" interview in Runner's World magazine »
To learn more about how you can get involved with HSC's Charity Athletics team, click here or contact Allie Krass at 312-560-4994.
National Leaders Discuss Recess at HSC Lunch & Learn
 |
| Susan Kurland of HSC's Principals' Project speaks at the Power of Recess event |
Parents, advocates, community leaders and school administrators gathered this week to discuss issues surrounding recess at HSC’s Lunch & Learn: The Power of Recess. In recent years, recess has emerged as a powerful tool in combating childhood obesity and increasing student achievement at school.
Toby Tate, Dean of the College of Applied Health Sciences for the University of Illinois at Chicago, discussed the connection between physical activity and cognitive development, while Vanessa Foster of the Cartoon Network’s national Rescuing Recess campaign discussed strategies to overcome barriers to recess at a school level. Susan Kurland of HSC’s Principals for Healthy Schools project talked about recess as a natural piece of an educational philosophy focused on the whole child, and West Town Leadership United’s Idida Perez and Graciela Suarez brought the perspective of parents in a community where recess was eliminated and successfully reinstated.
To learn more about HSC’s efforts to promote recess, please contact Guillermo Gomez.
|
