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Implementation of Texas Senate Bill 19 to Increase Physical Activity in Elementary Schools

  • Schools and Youth
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Abstract

In 2001, the 77th Texas legislature passed Senate Bill 19 requiring students in publicly funded elementary schools to participate in physical activity and schools to implement a coordinated school health program by September 1, 2007. We report on awareness of and adherence to Senate Bill 19 in a statewide sample of elementary schools and a subsample in two public health regions located along the Texas–Mexico border. Statewide, structured interviews with principals indicated high awareness of Senate Bill 19's requirements, but lower awareness of the need for parental involvement. Only 43% of Texas schools had adopted their coordinated program 1 year or less before the implementation deadline. Principals reported an average of 179 min of physical education per week, higher than the 135-min mandate. Among the subsample border schools, principals' physical activity reports were consistent with teacher records and student reports. Further, direct observation of physical education indicated that 50% of class time was spent in moderate and vigorous physical activity, meeting the level of physical activity intensity recommended by Healthy People 2010. The differences observed by public health regions included: more physical activity minutes in Region 10 (231 min compared to 217 min in Region 11); higher adoption of coordinated school health programs (92% compared to 75%); more district-level school health advisory committees (58% compared to 38%) and school-level school health advisory committees (83% compared to 25%); and a lower prevalence of obesity in 4th grade students (21% compared to 32%). Differences by region suggest that Senate Bill 19 is not being adhered to equally across the state, and some regions may require further support to increase implementation. Results underscore the importance of continued monitoring of enacted legislation, and that legislation for child health that focuses on school programs and policies requires funding and refinement to produce the intended effect.

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Acknowledgements

This project was primarily funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (#52467) to Steven H. Kelder. It was also supported by grants from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIH CMHD P20MD000170-019001) and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Public Health, University of Texas, Austin Regional Campus, Austin, TX, USA

    Steven H Kelder, Andrew E Springer, Carolyn L Smith, Nalini Ranjit & Deanna M Hoelscher

  2. Michael & Susan Dell Center for Advancement of Healthy Living, Austin, TX, USA

    Steven H Kelder, Andrew E Springer, Cristina S Barroso, Carolyn L Smith, Nalini Ranjit & Deanna M Hoelscher

  3. School of Public Health, University of Texas, Brownsville Regional Campus, Brownsville, TX, USA

    Cristina S Barroso

  4. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, Dallas, TX, USA

    Eduardo Sanchez

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  1. Steven H Kelder
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  2. Andrew E Springer
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  3. Cristina S Barroso
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  4. Carolyn L Smith
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  5. Eduardo Sanchez
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  6. Nalini Ranjit
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  7. Deanna M Hoelscher
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Correspondence to Steven H Kelder.

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Kelder, S., Springer, A., Barroso, C. et al. Implementation of Texas Senate Bill 19 to Increase Physical Activity in Elementary Schools. J Public Health Pol 30 (Suppl 1), S221–S247 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1057/jphp.2008.64

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/jphp.2008.64

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