32 Schools Awarded at Colorado Legacy Foundation’s 2012 Healthy Schools Summit

DENVER, CO — Today, the Colorado Legacy Foundation hosted the 2012 Healthy Schools Summit. As part of the day, thirty-two schools from across Colorado were recognized as 2012 Healthy School Champions and were awarded a total of $42,000 for their demonstrated commitment to promoting and implementing health and wellness in their schools and communities. More than 500 people representing the education, business, and nonprofit communities were in attendance.

“Nationally, there is growing awareness of the demonstrated link between student health and academic achievement,” said Dr. Helayne Jones, President and CEO of the Colorado Legacy Foundation. “It is an honor to recognize the great strides being made throughout Colorado and to offer today’s participants opportunities to learn from national experts and each other about creating and sustaining cultures of wellness within our schools.”

The 2012 Healthy School Champions received awards based on their completion of the Healthy School Champions’ Score Card, a voluntary, online self-assessment tool designed to measure best practices in the eight Coordinated School Health components. Sponsored by the Colorado Health Foundation, the day-long Summit featured two national health and wellness experts: Dr. Charles Basch, the Richard March Hoe Professor of Health Education at Teachers College, Columbia University; and Dr. James Marks, Senior Vice President and Director of the Health Group at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. During the event, Lt. Governor Joseph Garcia read a proclamation officially declaring April as Healthy Schools Month in Colorado.

“The Colorado Health Foundation’s vision is that, together, we will make Colorado the healthiest state in the nation,” said Anne Warhover, president and CEO of the Colorado Health Foundation. “We are pleased by the Colorado Legacy Foundation’s work to promote health and wellness for all Colorado students, and we are proud to sponsor such an important event.”

Educators, health experts, business leaders, and community organizations from around the state attended the Summit to hear from local and national experts about how to form strategies around elevating the importance of health and wellness in a school setting, creating safe and welcoming schools, and increasing meaningful community, parent and youth engagement, all for the purpose of creating sustainable and effective health and wellness practices in schools.