Teach One, Reach One

     Gidgett Sweazy

                                                    Success Story, March 2, 2020

                This proverbial saying has been used in many scenarios across the globe for centuries. Today, I want to use it in context of a recent program conducted at a local public high school by the Kentucky State University SNAP-Ed Program Coordinator. The program goal was to enable some of the high school students with special abilities to further their self-sufficiency. The program was six weeks long and the coordinator and teachers would discuss each week’s plan prior to each session and also discuss the effectiveness of each session after.

                Each session went well and all were pleased with the progress the kids were making. One of the teachers asked me on two different occasions why I continually stressed the importance of “moving”. I explained the risk factors for sedentary lifestyles and that I wanted to keep these kids as healthy as possible by instilling good habits of moving to get rid of unused calories and thus pounds as time would have it. I also explained that many of our students were at high risk for obesity by the nature of their issues, but that if we could give them confidence to do as much as they could, they would feel better and be proud of their accomplishments. Because she now understood the end goal more, she was able to really grasp the core of the lesson.

The program has been over now for about 2 months. I was meeting with another teacher in the school recently that has asked for programming and she shared with me that the teacher I spoke with has been taking her kids to do “active activites” every week since I had been there. They have been to a local church gym many times just to play (kickball, basketball, hopscotch and indoor games) as well as bowling and a campus hike!

I will also be working with some of these students again in a garden project so that they can be active and gain another skill. I am very excited that we are making a difference for all of our partners, but especially many of our at risk youth.