Project Leaders
Erin Moser and Kelsey Thome
Faculty Advisor
Peter Bodary
Project Summary
With a lack of preventative health knowledge, inaccessibility to means of a healthy lifestyle, and often limited role models for healthy living, children often lack a positive, permanent influence on their health, especially in such a critical time for habitual learning and growth. The goal of the Health Enrichment Program for Kids (HEPK) is to offer a holistic and interactive after school program that encourages a sustainable and healthy lifestyle for children at a young and malleable age. Our target group is kindergarten and first grade students, particularly of a minority and socioeconomically disadvantaged background.
Our goal is to improve the quantity and quality of nutritional education children receive, as well as to increase the amount of physical education instruction they attain in their developmental years. Healthy behaviors we hope to instill include finding fun ways to remain active throughout one’s lifetime (such as walking, dancing, and yoga), choosing healthier food options, and living a sustainable lifestyle (such as planting one’s own garden, buying more local produce, and buying fewer processed snacks).
HEPK works alongside The Peace Neighborhood Center, a local nonprofit whose mission is to provide programs for children, families, and individuals who are affected by social and economic disparities, and to help people discover options, enhance skills, and make choices that lead to self-sufficiency and positive community involvement. HEPK utilizes the organization’s facilities, general ideologies, and program goals when instructing and interacting with the kids. HEPK runs on a weekly basis, facilitating activities for kindergarten and first graders once a week at Peace Neighborhood. Each month focuses on one of four topics:
- A Lifestyle in Motion (Exercise)
- Healthy Relationships
- Diet & Nutrition
- Environmental Education