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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.

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Articles by Rosalie Aguilar-Santos

Infographic: Do All Kids Have Safe Places to Be Active (Spanish) via Active Living Research



Our friends over at Active Living Research (ALR) have done a wonderful job of creating a new Spanish infographic titled: "Hay Lugares Seguros Para Que Todos Los Ninos Puedan Realizar Actividades Físicas?" This translated version of ALR's popular "Do All Kids Have Safe Places to Be Active?" infographic was a collaborative effort between ALR and Salud America! The infographic paints a clear picture of the multiple barriers that keep children from low-income, Latino, and African American communities from being active. Despite the lack of recreational facilities, broken sidewalks, inadequate time for recess, and higher rates of automobile crashes and crime that exist in these underserved communities, there's hope! By working for improved policies and improvements to ...

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McAllen Independent School District Becomes 1st In the US To Implement ‘Let’s Move, Active Schools’ Districtwide



McAllen Independent School District (McAllenISD), a predominantly Latino district, recently became the first nationwide to have all of its 32 schools join the Let's Move, Active Movement! District Coordinator for K-12 Health & Physical Education After School Enrichment Programs, Mario Reyna, is credited with having worked to promote a plan of action which would provide school leaders with activation strategies and support to implement healthier practices in schools. Prior to becoming a Let’s Move! Active Schools district, Reyna attended multiple conferences where he learned various strategies to get students moving for at least 60 minutes a day. Soon afterward, Reyna started working to get buy-in from key leaders like the district's Superintendent Dr. James Ponce, the ...

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‘MEND’ Healthy Lifestyle Program to Soon Launch in Amarillo



Youth leaders from the Amarillo Activity Youth Center (AAYC) and the Amarillo Public Health Department are excited to announce the launch of a new healthy lifestyle program, available for free to kids ages 6-12. The 10 week Mind, Exercise, Nutrition, and Do it (MEND)  program will be available starting in March 2015. In a NewsChannel 10 report, Casie Stoughton, Director of the Public Health Department said that her department was collaborating with several community partners to make the program available to children. "We will help provide families some training and hands on work to change some patterns into a more healthy lifestyle," said Stoughton. Families will attend two-hour sessions twice a week for ten weeks. The program is funded through the Harrington Cancer ...

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Lawsuit Settlement Requires CA School Districts to Prove They Are Providing PE to Students



A settlement between two California parents and 37 school districts will require elementary schools to show proof that they are providing enough physical education (PE) time to students. As a result of the recent settlement, elementary school teachers will be required to publicly document how many minutes of PE students are getting. In the case that PE time is missed, the teacher must provide an explanation for why the lesson was missed and how they will replace those minutes. Parents will be able to access information on how many minutes of PE students are getting and local school boards will review schedules, according to a news article from the California Report. “We think it’s a huge accomplishment and it’s going to benefit public health in California,” said attorney ...

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‘Now Is The Time For Action’ For Latinos To Seek More Parks



With the January 2015 release of California's Parks Forward recommendations Latinos and all Californians have the chance to take part in rebuilding the California parks system. According to the recommendations, parks are essential to the well being of Californians. In a recent op-ed, Ron Gonzales, former mayor of San Jose and president/CEO of the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley writes about securing parks for California and the power that Latinos have to make such changes. "By speaking out now, we can improve the health of Hispanic Californians in nearly every corner of the state," Gonzales said. "We can secure safe places for our kids to play and socialize and permanently alter the landscape of Latino neighborhoods. We can expand access to healthy-living resources, ...

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Parents Grow Weary of Fast Food Ads That Target Children


fast food

Are parents tired of fast food companies who target children in their marketing strategies? According to a recent blog post by Casey Hinds of Ushealthykids.org they are. Hines says that the recent drop in sales of Coca-Cola and McDonald’s are in part due to parents no longer willing tolerate kids being targets for junk food ads. Both companies recently featured ads during Super Bowl Sunday 2015 in efforts to turn things around. However, Hines would argue that fast food companies should re-think their strategy and consider the health of children first. As cited by Hines, research from the  Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity shows just how aggressive fast food companies like McDonald’s can be when it comes to reaching children with their message. This is especially ...

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‘Spaces to Grow’ Program Brings Outdoor Play To Chicago Elementary Students



In the fall of 2014, through a partnership between Openlands and the Healthy Schools Campaign, four Chicago schoolyards were transformed into dynamic spaces for outdoor learning and active play. According to a recent blog post from the Healthy Schools Campaign, for over a year community leaders and school officials at four pilot schools had been planning for the implementation of the Space to Grow program. The hope is to provide children with an opportunity to go beyond the confines of the traditional learning environment to outdoor classrooms, where they will have the chance to experience edible gardens, hands on science lessons, and the opportunity to be more active. Students at Schmid, Grissom, Leland, and Morrill elementary schools are all benefiting from the new ...

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Fundraising Tool: ‘Growing Healthy Schools’ Resource via IT’s Time Texas



Teachers, coaches, and communities throughout Texas are excited about the opportunity to create a healthier school environment through the It's Time Texas Growing Healthy Schools initiative. In 2014, It's Time Texas launched their Growing Healthy Schools tool to provide communities with a platform to raise funds for projects aimed at improving school health. Thanks to support from the community and from It's Time Texas sponsors, children and staff at schools throughout the state of Texas have benefited from having new exercise equipment and gardens at their schools. Two examples of successful projects include: A new staff wellness center at University of Texas Elementary School; and A community garden at Colonial Hills elementary Watch the video below for more information on ...

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The It’s Time Texas ‘Growing Healthy Schools’ Website Helps Bring Healthy Changes to Schools in Texas



Teachers, coaches, and communities throughout Texas are excited about the opportunity to create a healthier school environment through the It's Time Texas Growing Healthy Schools initiative. In 2014, It's Time Texas launched their Growing Healthy Schools tool to provide communities with a platform to raise funds for projects aimed at improving school health. Thanks to support from the community and from It's Time Texas sponsors, children and staff at schools throughout the state of Texas have benefited from having new exercise equipment and gardens at their schools. Two examples of successful projects include: A new staff wellness center at University of Texas Elementary School; and A community garden at Colonial Hills elementary Watch the video below for more information on ...

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