Rancho Wins Governor\’s Fitness Challenge Gives $100,000 Prize to ModestoSchool

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Rancho Elementary School in Livermore won the gold medal in the Governor’s Fitness Challenge. However, the school earned something far more valuable by passing along its prize of a $100,000 fitness center to Modesto’s TuolumneElementary School.

“It just made sense,” said Rancho principal Chris Calabrese. “Rancho could definitely use the fitness center to evolve our wellness programs. We are not the most in need. We already have our Project Fit equipment and we are getting closer to our goal of putting in a track here at Rancho. This is a very caring school.”

On Wednesday, Sept. 16, Rancho received the20gold medal award for elementary schools in the 2009 Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports Spotlight Awards presented by the Anthem Blue Cross Foundation. All of the school’s fourth and fifth grade students, their teachers, office staff, running club coordinators Bret Dupuis and Dave Hinds, and Calabrese traveled to Sacramento that morning to receive the award, which was presented by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Council Chairman Jake Steinfeld.

When Rancho’s decision to donate their award was announced, all of the dignitaries at the event gave the students a standing ovation. “For a group of kids to be that generous is absolutely fantastic and renews my optimism for the future of this great state,” said Steinfeld.

Dupuis, a Rancho parent, said the decision to give away the award was easy and one that the students embraced. “Reading essays from other schools demonstrated that we do not need this fitness center in the way they do,” he said. “There are schools dealing with toxic fumes coming off the freeway and high crime neighborhoods.”

Plus, he added, Rancho wants to stay focused on its goal to build a track. So far Rancho has collected more than half of the $40,000 needed. A total of $13,000 came in last year alone, $5,000 of which was prize money for winning the regional award in the 2008 Governor’s Challenge.

Mark Lewis, principal of TuolumneElementary School, said that when his students learned of the gift they were stunned and then ecstatic. “We plan to pay it forward by making a contribution to another deserving institution,” he said. “An indoor fitness center will be great. We’re a year-round school in an area with high smog and high heat that prevent us from going outside for days at a time in the summer.”

Each finalist for a regional award and grand prize must submit three essays describing the school’s commitment to healthy eating, commitment to supporting physical activity, and the impact of a new fitness center. 

The third essay for Tuolumne described the school as an island of safety for the community. “Though there is a park a few blocks away, students are afraid to use the park because of gang activity. The20only other open space for students to play is the school. Due to the location and high poverty level, students do not have access to community recreation activities, available to other students in the community,” the essay stated.

To participate in the Governor’s Challenge, students must be active 30-60 minutes a day at least 3 days a week for a month in addition to physical education classes. At Rancho, much of that physical activity happens in the Rancho Runners Program. Three days a week before school students walk and run laps on the grass track that Dupuis and Hinds hope to turn into a regulation track soon. For more on the Rancho Runners and RanchoElementary School, visit www.ranchoschool.com.

“In each of the last two years, our kids have run over 40,000 miles. That averages out to 80 miles per student,” said Dupuis. “These kids are always asking when they can run.”

Rancho conducts a Monthly Family Fitness Day in which parents and staff join the students on the track before school. Last year, the school held its first Rancho Mile Challenge with a top time of 5:57. In addition, the school has Project Fit America outdoor exercise equipment that it received through a grant from Kraft Foods in 2006.

The kids aren’t the only ones committed to running and fitness; some Rancho parents were inspired to participate for the first time in marathons, half-marathons, 10k and 5k races, and triathlons. Dupuis and Hinds both compete in ironman distance triathlons.

The California Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to promoting physical activity for all Californians, with an emphasis on children and youth. For more information, visit www.calgovcouncil.org.