B.E.S.T. Active Transportation Group launches website

By John and Ceci McCormick --

In November 2012, a small group got together to discuss the advantages of all advocates of active transportation in Delaware (e.g. bicycle, pedestrian, bus transportation, safety, healthy lifestyle) working together to promote active lifestyles. We discussed the need to understand what the current advocacy efforts were and how to identify people who could organize their efforts. The initial name of the group, Bicycle Education and Safety Training has changed to Bringing Education and Safety Together. We wanted to keep the initials the same for consistency - B.E.S.T. - but needed to show an interest in collaborating with a broader range of transportation options.

Ceci (L) and John McCormick founded B.E.S.T. in November 2012

The B.E.S.T. Group advocates using Active Transportation in daily life. To promote this goal, we are currently developing a curriculum intended for Physical Education (P.E.) teachers in Kindergarten through Grade 12. We are inviting P.E. teachers to pilot our program during the  2014-15 school year. B.E.S.T. group members would provide support in locating resources, teaching lessons, and answering questions.

The B.E.S.T. Vision promotes bicycling, walking, and public transportation (Active Transportation) in a way that engages the talents, energies and influence of the various advocacy groups and local, county & state resources, so that our collective efforts are aligned and coordinated (i.e. healthy lifestyle, non-motorized activities to address obesity, etc.), in a way that Delaware’s active transportation initiatives are recognized nationally as a model program.

Visit our all new B.E.S.T. website, and be sure to add a bookmark for us. Check in periodically for all the latest updates and activities!

Come join the BEST

By Ceci McCormick -- The next B.E.S.T. (Bringing Safety and Education Together) meeting will be held on Wednesday, August 20th, at 7:00 PM, in the Conference Room at Woodlawn Library, in Wilmington.

If you are a P.E. Teacher interested in adding a bicycle-pedestrian component to your curriculum and/or someone interested in supporting the addition of an Active Transportation Component to the K-12 school curriculum, please consider attending.

The August meeting will include updates on:

• An evaluation tool for the B.E.S.T. Curriculum.
• Schools interested in piloting the curriculum.

 If you'd like additional information, send an email to johnandcecimcc@gmail.com

 

B.E.S.T. meeting on 2/12 will focus on Curriculum, Pilot Program, Summit

By Ceci McCormick

The next meeting of the B.E.S.T. Group will be held on Wednesday, February 12th at 7:00 PM, at NHPS (Nemours Health & Prevention Services) in Newark (map). The agenda will include a review of the B.E.S.T. Curriculum (below), discussion of the criteria for an Active Transportation pilot program using this curriculum document, and presentation planning for the Heels & Wheels Summit in March. 

John and  Ceci will be co-hosting the Summit's Safety & Education' s session with Jennifer Baldwin, the Pedestrian and Bicycle Coordinator for Raleigh, N. Carolina. Information that will be presented during the session includes the following: 

B.E.S.T. Session: Heels & Wheels Summit 2014

Background:  In the fall of 2012, various advocates for increased participation in active transportation in Delaware discussed the need for some coordination among the groups. The belief was that sharing information, and supporting each other, would allow everyone to be more effective, powerful advocates for a healthier life style.

The initial brainstorming session was designed to begin to create alignment among bicycle advocacy groups, DelDOT, and state education officials regarding teaching an LAB-based Bicycle Safety Course to children in Delaware. The first meeting of this group was framed by a draft vision statement [“Teach a comprehensive bicycle safety course to every 5^th grade class in Delaware each year, so that in 10 years we’ll have an emerging adult population with an appreciation for cycling as an activity and lifestyle”] and a name [Bicycle Education and Safety Training [B.E.S.T.].  During that meeting, the name and vision statement began to evolve, based on the input of the participants. Currently:

• B.E.S.T. stands for Bringing Education and Safety Together

• The vision statement is: “Promote bicycling, walking, and public transportation (Active Transportation) in a way that engages the talents, energies and influence of the various advocacy groups and local, county and state resources, so that our collective efforts are aligned and coordinated, and Delaware’s active transportation initiatives are recognized  as a model program.

The Goal: Pilot an Active Transportation Program at the elementary, middle school, and high school levels during the 2014-15 school year, in New Castle, Kent, and Sussex Counties. This program offers a low cost, inclusive way to meet Delaware’s Physical Education Standards and increase physical activity for students in Kindergarten through 12^th Grade.

1. Use the Lifetime Fitness B.E.S.T. Curriculum as the basis for the program at each school.  The curriculum is specific to the transportation abilities of several age groups (e.g. K-2, Gr. 3-5) and develops an understanding of – and interest in – active transportation over time.
2. B.E.S.T. Members to support school personnel as they implement the program (e.g. email, on site, bring questions to a B.E.S.T. Meeting)
3. B.E.S.T. Members and school personnel to evaluate program at the end of the year and offer recommendations.

 

 

If you support the mission of B.E.S.T., and want to become more involved, please email Ceci or John McCormick today: j.c.mccormick[at]verizon.net

B.E.S.T. November Meeting Agenda

By Ceci McCormick

This is a reminder that our next B.E.S.T. Meeting will be held on Wednesday, November 13th, at 7:00 PM, at Nemours Health and Prevention Services, in Newark (see map below). Our Next Steps for this meeting were/are:

• BEST Members are invited to work on curriculum development for the November meeting.
• Doug, Amy, John & Ceci to report on their efforts to obtain sponsors for our group.  Other BEST Members are encouraged to locate sponsors that can support our active transportation goal.
• Additional item:  Discuss getting on the agenda of the Wheels and Heels Summit in March.

We hope to see all of you next week. If you can't attend but have information to share on the above Next Steps, please send it before the meeting so we can incorporate it during our discussion.

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Delaware's BEST: September Update

The B.E.S.T. (Bringing Education and Safety Together) Group was started last year because people from various organizations wanted to share information and accelerate efforts on active transportation being pursued in Delaware. In addition to networking, we have been developing a curriculum that supports Delaware State Standards for Physical Education.
 
There are six Physical Education Standards for students in Kindergarten through Grade 12.  The following is from a draft version of our Lifetime Fitness Program Outline and addresses motor skills and movement patterns (Standard 1):

• Kindergarten-2nd Grade: Decision-making – when to run, walk, stop, start (pedestrians)
  
• Grades 3-5: On-bike Skills – start, stop, adjust speed
  
• Grades 6-8: Pre-driving Skills – travel on right, respond to traffic signs/signals (on bicycles)
  
• Grades 9-12: Life Long Health – slow race, relay race, sprint, distance/endurance  (on bicycles)

If you would like to become a part of this effort, please contact Ceci & John McCormick at johnandcecimcc@gmail.com

BEST Vision Statement: Promote bicycling, walking, and public transportation in a way that engages the talents, energies and influence of the various advocacy groups and local, county & state resources, so that our collective efforts are aligned and coordinated, and Delaware’s active transportation initiatives are recognized nationally as a model program.

Introducing Delaware's BEST (Bringing Education and Safety Together)

By John and Ceci McCormick, Co-Chairs -- Last November, a small group got together to discuss the advantages of all advocates of active transportation in Delaware (e.g. bicycle, pedestrian, bus transportation, safety, healthy lifestyle) to work together to promote active lifestyles (see Vision Statement below). We discussed the need to understand what the current advocacy efforts were and how to identify people who could organize our efforts.

The initial name of the group, Bicycle Education and Safety Training has changed to Bringing Education and Safety Together. We wanted to keep the initials the same for consistency – B.E.S.T. - but needed to show our interest in collaborating with a broader range of transportation options.

We have been meeting every two months since then to report out to the group on progress made by individuals and to decide on our next steps. Two guiding questions for these meeting are: What are the various advocacy efforts? Who would be responsible for each advocacy effort (component)? For example, Anthony Aglio & Sarah Coakley are Leads on 4^th & 5th Grade bicycle programs.

There are many people on our distribution list who can’t make every meeting but want to stay informed about our progress and are interested in contributing to the success of our group. If you would like to become a part of this effort, please contact Ceci & John McCormick at johnandcecimcc@gmail.com

Vision Statement: Promote bicycling, walking, and public transportation in a way that engages the talents, energies and influence of the various advocacy groups and local, county & state resources, so that our collective efforts are aligned and coordinated, and Delaware’s active transportation initiatives are recognized nationally as a model program.