Texas Fitness Now Program
In the continued fight against childhood obesity, Texas Comptroller Susan Combs is offering the state’s public schools and charter schools an opportunity to receive $20 million in grants during the next two years to support in-school physical education, nutrition and fitness programs for students in grades 6-8.
The new Texas Fitness Now grant program is aimed at middle school students attending schools where enrollment is at least 75 percent economically disadvantaged. Rules for the grant program were developed by the Comptroller in partnership with the Texas Education Agency, which is administering the program, evaluating grant applications and awarding the funds to schools.
An estimated 700 schools qualify for Texas Fitness Now grants. The minimum grant is $1,500, and schools can get more, based upon their enrollment. More than 270,000 students could benefit from the grants.
The deadline for schools to apply for a Texas Fitness Now grant is Oct. 1. Details are available in the program guidelines (PDF) and FAQs (PDF). Additional information and application forms can be found online at the TEA Web site.
Schools may also contact Marissa Rathbone at TEA, (512) 463-3064, for more information about the Texas Fitness Now program, or TEA’s Division of Formula Funding, (512) 463-8525, for more information about grant funding.