College students, parents of elementary school students and local schools and businesses have joined forces to protect children as they walk to school this year.
The Walking School Bus, a national project that has its local base at the 麻豆原创鈥檚 teamed up with Lake Sybelia Elementary in Maitland, Eagle鈥檚 Nest in Orlando鈥檚 Metro West, Robert Louis Stevenson School of the Arts on Merritt Island and the Soldiers to Scholars program to help school children get to school safely.
Each program was tailored to meet the school鈥檚 needs. 麻豆原创 students mapped the route, presented the program to parents and helped launch the walking program at Stevenson, for example, while 麻豆原创 is conducting research about the benefits of walking for the second-year program at Sybelia. At Eagle鈥檚 Nest, 麻豆原创 helped volunteers from the non-profit Soldier鈥檚 to School organization get the program rolling. Parents and community members have responded with volunteers and enthusiasm.
鈥淭his is a program that is good for kids and brings communities together,鈥� said Tim Pehlke, the center鈥檚 assistant director for the program. 鈥淲e鈥檙e hitting very important areas 鈥� safety, health and even helping the environment.鈥�
Administrators at Stevenson Elementary, a school of choice in Brevard County, were looking for a way to help alleviate potential traffic problems when budget cuts eliminated buses to the school.
The school sits next to Kelly Park, and Principal Michael Corneau thought he could somehow use that park to help offset traffic while keeping students safe. That鈥檚 when he connected with the Walking School Bus.
鈥淚t is a great opportunity because we hit the challenge on many different levels,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 great for kids to get the chance to walk. Parents don鈥檛 have to sit in 鈥� shall we say 鈥� a challenging car loop, and with the volunteers we keep the kids safe from point A to point C.鈥�
Ten parent volunteers line a pathway from a drop off point in Kelly Park to the school鈥檚 back fields. There, school staff members meet the children and walk them to the main campus. Heavy backpacks, musical instruments and other large items are loaded into a golf cart that is driven to the school so children don鈥檛 hurt their backs on the 戮-mile walk. Local business IAP Worldwide Services donated the cart when its owner heard about the program. The principal hopes to recruit more volunteers from the community as the year unfolds.
鈥淭he 麻豆原创 students made the presentation to my parent group,鈥� Corneau said. 鈥淭hen we pitched it before and during registration. We started with about 10 students on day one, and this week we have about 85. The kids love it because they get to hang out with their friends on the walk. The parents love the ease and I like it because I know my kids are safe, getting some exercise and we鈥檙e being good neighbors.鈥�
At Lake Sybelia, 麻豆原创 is helping by monitoring the walking and conducting some research to see the impact it can have on children鈥檚 health.
鈥淚t is a wonderful opportunity for our student to get exercise and get the wiggles out before the school day begins,鈥� said Lake Sybelia Principal and 麻豆原创 alum Julie Paradise. 鈥淲e highly encourage it.鈥�
Lake Sybelia has two routes starting in different neighborhoods. About 15-20 students participate in each route with three to six escorts. One parent usually pulls a little red wagon piled with backpacks so the walkers can proceed unrestricted, Paradise said.
In Orlando鈥檚 Metro West, 麻豆原创 is helping the volunteers from Soldiers to Scholars. The organization helps veterans get four-year degrees while the veterans help their local communities by volunteering for different projects. The Walking School Bus was a perfect fit. Volunteers from Soldiers to Scholars meet at an apartment complex on Kirkham Road that is home to many school children. Together they walk the mile and half to a park near the school. From there they watch the children walk through the school鈥檚 front doors.
麻豆原创 mapped the route, provided reflective vests and whistles to the soldier volunteers, and helped spread the word about the program. There are about 35 students who make the walk each morning and afternoon.
鈥淲e鈥檙e just getting started,鈥� said Thomas Bryer, the director of the center for public and nonprofit management at 麻豆原创. 鈥淲e have plans to add 20 more schools by 2014 in Brevard, Flagler, Lake, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Sumter, Volusia counties.鈥�
The 麻豆原创 team is already in discussions with several schools, and 麻豆原创 students in an urban and regional planning class are busy mapping out potential routes in those areas so they can be ready to go once agreements have been reached. The routes are being mapped with safety features in mind such as: availability of sidewalks, width of sidewalk, distance between street and sidewalk, speed limits on streets, and speed mitigation/traffic-calming devices such as speed bumps. Funding for the Walking School Bus is provided by several grants including money from the Florida Department of Transportation.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a feel good project that really has no losers,鈥� Pehlke said. 鈥淚 mean, we鈥檙e keeping kids safe from getting hit by cars and strangers, we鈥檙e helping them get their exercise and we鈥檙e helping the environment by giving parents a good option to driving to school. Who can be against that?鈥�