Follow-Up Invite Fromspeak Out! Daymeeting to Congress

Follow-up invite fromSPEAK Out! DayMeeting to Congress

Please send as soon as possible following SPEAK Out! Day

Dear member of Congress:

On behalf of SHAPE America – Society of Health and Physical Educators,it was a pleasure to meet you/your staffduring the 11thannual SPEAK Out! Day on February 14. As I mentioned in our meeting, we’d like to invite you toname of school/eventto witness firsthand the incredible impactthat our health education/physical educationprogram has on the youth of state/school district/school.

As members of SHAPE America, we fought for nearly a decade to have health and physical education recognized as critical components of a student’s education. We are thrilled that Congress elevated both health and physical education in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) by including them as part of a student’s well-rounded education. This is an important designation for these two subjects that were left out of No Child Left Behind, the legislation’s previous authorization.

As part of a well-rounded education, health and physical education programs can now be supported by funding allocated to states for Title I, Title II, and Title IV - Student Support and Academic Enrichment block grants and the 21st Century Community Learning Center program.

Research has shown that participating in physical activity and physical education improves student attendance, test scores, behavior, enthusiasm for other academic subjects, motivation to learn, and reduces discipline referrals. Evidence also shows that skills-based health education reduces student participation in behaviors such as smoking, heavy drinking, school misbehavior, and violence. It also develops a student’s ability to manage stress, incidents of bullying, and peer pressure.

As educators that specialize in health and physical education, we deliver instruction that meets our existing state and professional standards, focuses on a specific course of study and incorporates student assessments and measurable outcomes. Our programs provide students with a foundation for a lifetime of health, wellness, and character development. Through effective teaching, we can help students develop the ability and confidence to be physically active and make healthy choices for a lifetime. It’s a simple, but powerful belief that drives and unites us as health and physical educators.

Now that health and physical education have been prioritized in ESSA as part of a student’s well-rounded education and are allowable uses of federal education funding, we believe it’s important that you witness how our programs work to engage students in state/school district/school.When you visit, you will see (give program examples here).

My colleagues and I look forward to welcoming you on behalf of state/school district/school’sstudents. I will follow up with staff member you met with on SPEAK Out! Dayin hopes of determining a mutually agreeable day and time.

Sincerely,