About the Author

Author Picture

Rosalie Aguilar-Santos

Rosalie Aguilar Santos, MS, is Salud America!'s national project coordinator. She is passionate about nutrition, physical activity, and opportunities to engage communities in advocacy actions to promote Latino childhood health.

Connect with Rosalie:
Twitter Link

Articles by Rosalie Aguilar-Santos

Creating Healthier School Concession Stands in San Antonio, Texas



What happens when a school district’s wellness policy doesn’t cover student sports games or other after-school events? In one district in San Antonio, where about 63% of the residents are Latino, a school board president drove a policy change to implement healthier menu options at concession stands during school-sanctioned after-school events. With the support of various school officials, parents, and students, the new menu extends the district’s already-strong wellness policy to after-school hours and allows healthier items for students and parents. The Issue of Healthy School Concession Food Awareness: In San Antonio, Texas, the North East Independent School District (NEISD), which has a population of about 67,000 students, of which 55 percent are Hispanic, had already ...

Read More

Healthier Check-Out Aisles at the Wal-Mart in Anderson, Calif.


Better Food in Neigborhood - Healthier Checkout LInes2

Grocery store check-out lines can be one of the toughest spots for kids to make healthy choices. In the fall of 2006, concerned students in Anderson, a small city in northern California’s Shasta County, decided to take a stand against junk food in check-out aisles, and their impact rippled into many grocery stores across the country. The Issue of Healthy Food Awareness: A group of middle-schoolers in Anderson saw the daily struggle they and their peers faced at the grocery and convenience stores: a lot of junk food options at the check-out aisles. They were fed up with how the placement and heavy promotion of these unhealthy products encouraged kids to eat poorly—a poor diet is one of the biggest contributors to obesity and its related health complications. Learn: Already ...

Read More

Unlocking the Gates: Playgrounds Open to Families in Spartanburg, S.C.


Two Young Girls Playing On Swing In Playground

In communities where parks and land-space are limited, shared use agreements are providing more areas of recreation for children. Spartanburg, S.C., for example, does not have enough active spaces. Although the idea of sharing space in Spartanburg had existed for some time, formalizing shared use agreements between the City and two school districts—Spartanburg County School District 6 and Spartanburg County School District 7—took about two years. Thanks to the collaboration of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, the two school districts, and various community organizations, Spartanburg now has a shared use policy that keeps 10 school playgrounds open to the community during non-school hours. The Issue of Physical Activity Awareness: Since the late 1990s, members of the ...

Read More

Passing a Complete Streets Policy in San Antonio, Texas



San Antonio pedestrians and cyclists will now have safer streets and walkways thanks to the implementation of the citywide Complete Streets policy. This San Antonio Complete Streets policy has not only helped those living in the city’s Westside, but has also paved the way for residents throughout the entire community to gain a better understanding of how an active-living-friendly environment can foster healthier lives. The Issue of Transportation Awareness: Health professionals, including David Clear and Kathy Shields of the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District (Metro Health), were beginning to see that obesity was a problem in San Antonio (63% Latino). Along with obesity, many also suffered from diabetes. In 2004, Metro Health began collecting health data from students ...

Read More

Promotores Bring First Park to West Chula Vista, Calif. in 25 Years


Promotoras Park Harborside physical activity

Promotores working with the Chula Vista Community Collaborative (CVCC) participated in an asset mapping project in Chula Vista, Calif., in 2000. As part of a $5,000 grant for an adopt-a-block project—a joint effort of the San Diego County’s Substance Abuse Summit VI and the CVCC—promotores spoke with local residents to learn about the neighborhood’s assets, health, and safety concerns. It was then that they discovered a lack of active space in the community, and that residents wanted a park. Eventually, the promotores teamed up with community agencies, gathered information, and presented their case to the Chula Vista City Council. After receiving city approval, they gave input for the park’s design and watched construction of Harborside Park— the first park in that area ...

Read More

Housing Developer Adds Sidewalks, Playground to Neighborhood in the ‘Colonias’



Not everyone has access to places to play or be physically active. That is why a housing agency, fueled by local research and focus groups of homeowners, created policy to include sidewalks, hike/bike trails, and a playground to plans for an affordable housing neighborhood in a colonia, an impoverished region of South Texas. Why Is Obesity an Issue in Colonias? Research indicates an obesity rate of 18.1% among Mexican-American preschool -aged children living in colonias—small, impoverished settlements that often lack proper infrastructure along the Texas-Mexico border. Colonias tend to lack sidewalks, street lights, places for recreation, and running water. Ann Cass, director of Proyecto Azteca—a non-profit organization that works to build homes for residents in the ...

Read More

Community Transforms Train Tracks, into Hike & Bike Trail in Brownsville, TX



Having limited resources, partnerships and community involvement played a key role in transforming old train tracks into the Belden Trail in West Brownsville, Texas. A physician-turned-city-leader worked with community leaders and discussed ways to improve the quality of life for residents living in a part of the city that lacks spaces for physical activity. The team’s persistence and belief in how this trail could transform the community helped them secure a statewide rails-to-trails grant. But the story doesn’t end there. Recently, the city added ADA approved sidewalks leading to nearby bus stops, developed a master hike and bike plan, and is planning for a community garden. Through teamwork and dedication to an important cause, permanent improvements and healthy changes can ...

Read More

Students Reclaim Streets with a Walking School Bus in Springfield


walking school bus physica activity

An elementary school is proving that morning exercise through a walking school bus program can benefit students, parents, and the community. Not only have school attendance rates increased, community engagement levels have increased, too. A Walking School Bus at Brightwood Elementary School in Springfield, Mass., now offers hope—and physical activity—to a community that not long ago faced fears of unsafe streets and high crime rates. Karen Pohlman, a nurse practitioner and community program manager for Baystate Medical Center, knew the community was struggling and wanted to improve people’s health, so she developed a plan to implement a walking school bus at Brightwood Elementary. The Need for Physical Activity among Children Awareness: Crime was high in the North End of ...

Read More

Monthly Bike Ride Program Gets More San Antonio Kids on Bikes



Growing up, Dante Jones always looked forward to weekend bike rides with his father. In those rides with his dad, Jones said he learned important life lessons and experienced the beauty of the outdoors, all while getting exercise. So when his daughter, Glory, was old enough to ride a bike he decided to start a similar tradition. He hoped it would allow them to spend more quality time together and instill in her the value of living an active lifestyle and the fun of activities like biking and skating. Jones noticed that other children from the neighborhood wanted to tag along when he and his daughter would go out for bike rides. He invited them along. He started to realize that there was a lack of positive role models in the neighborhood, and also a lack of afterschool ...

Read More