Students Can Run And Move
( Grades K-5)
In an effort to reverse the rising local childhood obesity rates, the Regional Y operates the SCRAM (Students Can Run and Move) afterschool fitness/nutrition program to get at-risk, low-income Danbury elementary school students (grades K-5) moving and to educate them and their families about good nutrition and the importance of exercise.
SCRAM was the vision and plan developed by the Coalition for Healthy Kids, a Danbury based Coalition.
SCRAM runs from October to May in conjunction with the Danbury Public Schools' after-school, Extended Learning Program (ELP). SCRAM features a daily healthy snack, weekly nutrition lessons, and 45 minutes of daily physical activities. At the end of the 26 weeks, students show improved physical fitness test scores, are more knowledgeable about good nutrition and increase their fruit and vegetable consumption. SCRAM is proven to help overweight children stabilize and even improve their BMI levels, and through quality physical activity programming. Through an effective parent education component, SCRAM helps families reinforce healthy behaviors at home. SCRAM has been recognized by the CDC as an effective health strategy. A 4 to 6 week summer variation is also offered at up to four Danbury Public School summer school sites.
During the spring and summer months, students involved in SCRAM experience hands-on nutrition projects and activities including tending to a raised bed gardens, preparing and tasting a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, and taking walking field trips to the Farmer's Market located at Kennedy Park in Danbury, CT.
Children and families are taught the Let's Go health message of "5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, 2 or less hours of recreational screen time, 1 hour of play every day and 0 intakes of sugar sweetened beverages." Program outcomes include improved weight status and fitness levels, increased fruit and vegetable consumption, decreased sugar sweetened beverage intake, and decreased time spent in recreational screen time and more time playing.
Since 2010, the program has reached more than 2500 children and families.
The Regional YMCA of Western Connecticut would like to thank the following sponsors for their support of the SCRAM Program:
- Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation 2015-2016
- CDC- ACHIEVE- Action Communities for Health Innovation and Environmental Change 2011, 2012
- Communities Putting Prevention to Work 2010
- Danbury Public Schools 2012 - 2015
- General Mills 2014 - 2015
- Goodrich-UTC Aerospace Systems 2010 - 2015
- Meserve Foundation 2012 - 2015
- Peggy Zamore- individual sponsor 2015
- State Farm of Danbury 2014 and 2015
- Trust for Public Land 2013
- Union Savings Bank- 2012, 2014, 2016
- United Way of Western Connecticut through Strong Heart Healthy Children 2011 - 2016
- Whole Foods Foundation 2014
Volunteer Capacity:
- Western Connecticut State University Health Promotion Program
- Danbury Garden Club
- UCONN Extension service- Danbury Master Gardeners
- Regional YMCA employees for summer Farmer's Market Program