Eighty-three students and teachers from seven Cleveland Schools are participating in a program designed to increase health and self-confidence. The eleven week Motivating Movement Through Marathoning Challenge is a joint program between Cleveland Schools and the Cleveland YMCA. The Motivating Movement Through Marathoning Challenge was created out of the Cleveland Department of Public Health's nationally-funded Steps to a Healthier Cleveland program and promotes exercising particularly running and walking for in youth and continued throughout life. This program is a response to the troubling national statistics about health and obesity in the nation's schools. The students participating in the Motivating Movement Through Marathoning Challenge engaged in a series of conditioning exercises and running and walking a cumulative 26.2 miles which is equal in distance to the annual Cleveland/Rite Aid Marathon. One group of students from Denison School has formed an all girl-team. Other Cleveland Schools involved in the Motivating Movement Through Marathoning Challenge are Sunbeam School, Emile B. deSauze School, Orchard School, Buckeye-Woodland School, Tremont School and Willow School. Each student received help and assistants from YMCA mentors and trainers which included a free four-month membership to the YMCA branch in their area. All the participants engaged in exercises that equaled 2.5 miles per week. A special celebration was held at the 10-mile mark in preparation for last month's 29th annual Rite Aid Marathon and 10K events, which attracted nearly 8,000 runners. The students from Cleveland Schools participating in the Motivating Movement Through Marathoning Challenge received several surprises which included a pre-race pep talk given by four-time Boston Marathon winner Bill Rodgers, a pair of Asic's running shoes donated by the Second Sole in Mayfield Heights, T-shirts and an official Rite Aid Marathon medal.

The Prestigious Governor's Gold Award

Several teachers and staff members at the Daniel E. Morgan School, a member of the Cleveland Schools, have been given the prestigious Governor's Gold Award. They received this award as part of the Healthy Ohioans physical education initiative. The Daniel E. Morgan School has received particularly high scores in the areas of promoting healthy choices, physical education practices, nutrition education, and tobacco education. Teachers and other representatives from the Daniel E. Morgan School will receive the Governor's Gold Award at an award ceremony and luncheon honoring the school in August.

Teachers Make Pact to Fight Being Overweight

A group of dedicated teachers at Cleveland School's Emile B. deSauze School have decided to work towards losing weight. Over an eight-week period seventeen teachers challenged each other to a weight loss competition. As a motivation, each teacher contributed to a weekly pot. The teachers were judged and led by the school's physical education teacher. Under the PE teachers guidance the group lost a combined one hundred eleven pounds. As an honor to their dedication and competition the American Heart Association treated the teacher's group to a healthy breakfast and gave each teacher a “Go Red for Women” wrist bands.