ROCKINGHAM County, Va. (WHSV) – Rockingham County Supervisor Joel Hensley and school board member Hilary Irons have announced the launch of a new student fitness initiative, “Rockingham Moves.” The 30-day pilot program is aimed at helping students build healthy habits through daily physical activity outside of school.
Joel Hensley, District 5 representative on the Rockingham County Board of Supervisors and the creator of this program, said that introducing fitness activities to kids at a young age can help them understand consistency early, which can help them live a more positive lifestyle.
“I thought about this idea during the summer. I’ve been thinking about it for a while, actually, and was trying to figure out how to encourage kids to move more and be more active and take physical fitness more seriously,” said Hensley. “There’s a new study coming out that says kids today aren’t getting the daily exercise they should.”
Hensley said serving on the board of supervisors is something he is proud of and he wants to use it in a way that will make a difference in the community.
“I never took this role to just use the land … and I think that I have an opportunity, and I have a passion for this, to encourage students to continue to move and be more physically active but not do it in a way that they are trying to reach certain standards,” said Hensley. “They’re trying to reframe how they look at physical fitness and see it as a lifelong journey, not just a standard they have to meet.”
This program is different, Hensley said, because it promotes fitness beyond the classroom and not just when students and PE teachers are at school.
“If they’re not doing physical activity at home, they’re going to school. … A lot of times when they come home, the first thing they want to do, I think, is go to the video game or the tablet …
The program is completely voluntary, Hensley said, and “it really teaches kids how to take control of their own health and fitness from an early age.” That way, he said, as children become adults and have more responsibilities, they can maintain consistent fitness habits that will have long-term benefits for their health.
“It’s going to reduce all kinds of diseases related to that, like diabetes, and it’s going to help kids in the long run and hopefully give them a long, happy life,” Hensley said. “But also, there’s also a mental health factor. People who move more, people who are more physically active, report being happier. Those endorphins kick in, and so we want kids to be healthier, but also happier.”
Hensley said he hopes that this is something that can be developed in the future in many different areas, such as the “Mud Run” challenge and involving non-profit organizations and more.
“We hope to do this three times throughout the regular school year, and we can adjust whether it’s a physical activity or we can adjust it to be a sleep and meditation type of activity as well,” Hensley said. “There are different directions we could go in, but the PE teachers in Rockingham County and RCPS responded very positively to it, and that encouraged us.”
Hensley said that in his personal experience, sports helped him as a teenager, adding that kids don’t have to be competitive to be athletic or enjoy activities that help with mental and physical health. That’s what he said he hopes this new program will do for kids in Rockingham County.
“If you don’t make the basketball team or the football team, that’s OK. You can still be athletic and build their habits and make it a foundation in your life, so I want to try to help kids see that it’s useful to you at the end of the day,” said Hensley. “Being in this position gives me the opportunity to take some of my life experiences and share them with people and hopefully encourage people in some way.”
This program is expected to start the first week in April, RCPS PE teachers will distribute forms to students to take home.
The Rockingham Moves pilot program will provide three physical activity options to participate in. Students must track their daily activities for 30 days, with three levels of participation:
- Starter Movement – 20 minutes of activity per day
- Character Builder – 40 minutes per day
- Fitness leaders – 60 minutes per day
For questions, contact Director of Physical Fitness Sheldon Rice at srice@rockingham.k12.va.us or go to Joel Hensley.
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