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High School Gets Student Fitness Grant of $234,000

Posted on: Thursday, 7 July 2005, 09:01 CDT

Royalton-Hartland High School has been awarded a $234,000 federal grant to help shake the couch potato out of the student body and help students become physically fit.

Principal Kevin Shanley said the money will be used "to set up a facility to raise the fitness level of our students. It will be part of our physical education program, which we could eventually open to the community."

School district officials expect to receive the first $91,500 of the grant to set up the fitness center during the 2005-06 school year and then complete the project with the remaining grant money in 2006-07.

The fitness center will include "a lot of aerobic equipment, like treadmills, stationary bikes and other state-of-the art fitness equipment," Shanley said. "It will include some weights. It will be a fitness center similar to what you might find a local YMCA."

With the center, students will be able to develop a personal fitness program that will help them become more healthy. It will be used before and after school.

Shanley said he is not sure when the program will start. He said he is meeting with federal officials in late July to learn more.

"It won't be ready by September, but I hope we'll be able to get started possibly in January," Shanley said.

The school district had to show some patience to obtain the grant.

"We applied for it two years ago and didn't get it," Shanley said. "So we reapplied last year, and this time we got it. We were notified about it last month."

Royalton-Hartland is the third Niagara County school district to obtain the money, known as a Carol M. White grant. The Starpoint School District received one two years ago, and Wilson School District received one the year before that.

e-mail: pwestmoore@buffnews.com

Source: Buffalo News

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