Bill Text: NY S00649 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Directs the commissioner of education to create a pilot program to improve physical education/physical activity programs in certain schools.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2012-02-10 - PRINT NUMBER 649A [S00649 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-S00649-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        649--A
                              2011-2012 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                      (PREFILED)
                                    January 5, 2011
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  Sen. SAMPSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
         printed to be committed to the Committee on Education  --  recommitted
         to the Committee on Education in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8
         --  committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended
         and recommitted to said committee
       AN ACT directing the commissioner of education to create a pilot program
         to improve physical education/physical activity  programs  in  certain
         schools;  and  providing for the repeal of such provision upon expira-
         tion thereof
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Legislative  findings  and  intent.  The United States is
    2  confronting a devastating obesity epidemic. The primary causes of child-
    3  hood obesity - lack of physical activity and poor  diet  -  continue  to
    4  permeate  youth  culture  and  will  diminish hundreds of thousands more
    5  lives and cost billions more  dollars  if  left  un-reversed.  26.5%  of
    6  adults in New York report that they do not engage in any physical activ-
    7  ity  compared to the national average of 22%. More than 700,000 New York
    8  City residents have diabetes, most of those suffer from type 2 diabetes,
    9  a devastating disease primarily caused by lack of physical activity  and
   10  poor  diet. Type 2 diabetes is expected to afflict one in three American
   11  children born in and after 2000. The medical cost of treating  diabetics
   12  in New York City is almost half a billion dollars a year; the human toll
   13  and  loss  of  workplace productivity is incalculable.  Overweight youth
   14  10-15 years old have an 80% chance of becoming an obese adult by age 25.
   15  43% of all NYC elementary  school  students  are  overweight  or  obese.
   16  Student-teacher  ratios  for  physical education in New York City are an
   17  estimated 730 to 1. While  New  York  state  requires  physical  fitness
   18  education  in  schools,  many schools have difficulties implementing the
   19  requirements due to limited resources in funding and/or space.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD00259-02-2
       S. 649--A                           2
    1    S 2. (a) The commissioner of education is hereby directed to establish
    2  a physical education/physical activity pilot program. The department  of
    3  education  shall  select  at least ten public elementary, middle or high
    4  schools in the state to participate in a two year pilot program aimed at
    5  improving  physical  education  and  physical  activity programs in such
    6  schools. The department may expand such  program  to  additional  public
    7  schools  upon request and available funding. Seventy-five percent of the
    8  schools selected shall be located in  the  city  of  New  York  and  the
    9  remaining  shall  be  selected based upon the criteria set forth in this
   10  act. Each participating school shall be required to provide at least  45
   11  minutes  per  week  of  a combination of physical education and physical
   12  activity for each student. A pilot school shall not be penalized in  any
   13  manner  if  a reasonable attempt has been made to provide the program to
   14  each student.
   15    (b) The program shall be  administered  through  a  contract  with  an
   16  outside entity that is able to provide:
   17    (1) a minimum of 45 minutes of activity per week for each student;
   18    (2) a proven track record of effectiveness;
   19    (3)  flexibility in providing services, either before, during or after
   20  school hours;
   21    (4) physical education, in addition to nutrition and health education;
   22    (5) a system of accountability and transparency;
   23    (6) on-going support and training services; and
   24    (7) incentives and awards for good performance for individuals, class-
   25  es and schools.
   26    (c) The pilot program established by this act may be  run  in  coordi-
   27  nation  with  the  Road  Runner  Mighty  Milers  program, a school-based
   28  program combining daily aerobic activities with  personalized  goal-set-
   29  ting,  nutrition,  academic,  and  health education components available
   30  at-site and on-line, established by the New York  Road  Runners  Founda-
   31  tion.
   32    (d) The education department may accept applications for participation
   33  in the pilot program from schools meeting the following criteria:
   34    (1)  at least 50% of the students qualify for federal free and reduced
   35  lunches;
   36    (2) the school has demonstrated limited facilities and/or resources to
   37  implement a physical education program; and
   38    (3) the school will be able to provide a "site coordinator"  including
   39  but   not   limited  to  a  member  of  the  facility  or  member  of  a
   40  parent/teacher organization.
   41    (e) The department of education shall conduct  an  evaluation  of  the
   42  pilot  program which may be done in collaboration with an outside entity
   43  and shall report preliminary findings by May 15, 2013 and a final report
   44  by July 15, 2013 to the governor and the legislature.
   45    S 3.  Funding  for  the  physical  education/physical  activity  pilot
   46  program  shall  be  provided through appropriations to the department of
   47  education.
   48    S 4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that  the  pilot
   49  program  established by section two of this act shall be administered in
   50  the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 school years; and provided further that  the
   51  provisions  of this act shall expire and be deemed repealed on and after
   52  June 30, 2014.