SENATE BILL NO. 200 "An Act relating to physical activity requirements for students in kindergarten through grade eight." 10:27:22 AM SENATOR MIA COSTELLO, SPONSOR, offered a sponsor statement on the legislation: Senate Bill 200 amends state law to ensure Alaskan students receive a minimum recommended amount of physical activity at school. Under the bill, school districts would provide at least 90% of the recommended exercise time for adolescents by the U.S. Center for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC). School districts would have the flexibility to meet this requirement, equating to 54 minutes, through physical education classes, recess, or a combination of activity types. The amount of time students spend in school has grown over the years. Changes to the school day and curriculum have led to less time for students to participate in unstructured physical activity. Lack of exercise can have a detrimental effect on youth, and can cause obesity and other health concerns. This bill aims to ensure Alaskan students in kindergarten through eighth grade are involved in physical activity and have breaks from the classroom that allow youth to destress and improve their focus. Currently, slightly more than half of school districts in Alaska have a written policy for elementary and middle school recess. This bill will set a minimum standard to ensure students receive adequate opportunities for physical activity. Breaks in the school day have been proven to aid information retention and focus. Unstructured physical activity, like recess, lets students process classroom lessons and allows for an education outside the classroom from their peers. A CDC report reviewed 50 peer-reviewed studies and documented links between physical activity and academic performance, including achievement, behavior, cognitive skills, and attitude. The American Association of Pediatrics has also found that recess, either indoor or outdoor, led to more attentive and productive students, in addition to learning on playgrounds from peers. Ensuring adequate physical activity will allow Alaska's students the opportunity to learn from each other, to improve their academic performance, to fight childhood obesity through exercise, and to reduce the stress levels that have adverse effects on our children. This bill helps them grow into successful adults. Representative Costello shared that she suffered from scoliosis as a child, which had prompted her to become a life-long swimmer. She stressed that the benefits of regular physical activity were numerous. 10:30:31 AM SORCHA HAZELTON, INTERN, SENATOR MIA COSTELLA, stated that the legislation would ensure that Alaska's kids were physically active and mentally healthy, setting a balance of structured and unstructured time during the school day. She said that the bill would amend state law to ensure school districts provided a daily minimum of physical activity for kindergarten through 8th grade students. She stated that the state did not have a policy requiring or recommending recess or physical activity breaks at any grade level. She furthered that only half of Alaska's school districts had a written policy for elementary and middle school recess, and one-third of the school district policies for elementary schools did not meet the CDCs daily recommended amount of physical activity in a full school week. She stressed that physical activity had many benefits for students, such as: combating childhood obesity, improving academic performance, and fighting the rise of youth mental disorders. 10:32:32 AM Ms. Hazelton relayed that physical activity allowed students to learn from their peers outside of a classroom. She lamented the growing issue of childhood obesity in the state and the associated medical healthcare costs. She said that 26 percent of Alaskan high school students were overweight or obese, while 36 percent of K-12 students were overweight or obese in the 2010-2011 school year. 40 percent of Alaskan 3 year-olds were either overweight or obese according to the 2014 Alaska Obesity Facts Report. She shared that the legislation would address the issue through a simple, daily activity. She noted that recess and P.E. had been cut in schools across the nation in order to implement more instructional time. She stressed that physical activity had been proven to improve focus and information retention. She noted that the American Academy of Pediatrics had found that children's brains processed information best if given a period of interruption after instruction; best served through unstructured breaks, rather than shifting subject matter. She expounded on the merits of recess and physical activity for children and young adults. 10:36:09 AM Co-Chair MacKinnon referred to an inability to hold recess due to inclement weather. She wondered whether schools would suffer repercussions for not getting students outside due to bad weather. Ms. Hazelton stated that inclement weather was always a challenge. She asserted that many of the physical activities listed in the bill could be done indoors; the bill would not rule out in-classroom exercises. She added that many students did not mind playing outside in the rain. 10:38:03 AM Senator Dunleavy commented on the issue of students being inappropriately dressed for outdoor recess. He acknowledged that appropriate dress for appropriate climate would need to be stressed. 10:39:01 AM Co-Chair MacKinnon discussed the safety issue of ice on the playground. She thought that children could move indoors to a gym or auditorium for exercise, but noted that all schools in the state were not equip with those facilities. 10:39:35 AM Co-Chair MacKinnon OPENED public testimony. 10:40:04 AM ALISE GALVIN, SELF, JUNEAU, testified in strong support of the bill. She expressed that as a mother of four children she believed that all children needed more physical activity. She expressed concern with limited adult supervision during outdoor playtime, and training for those overseeing physical activities indoors. 10:41:59 AM EDDIE GRASSER, SELF, JUNEAU, discussed the bill. He mentioned a program sponsored by the Department of Fish and Game called the National Archery in the Schools program, which he believed mirrored the goals discussed by the bill sponsor. He asserted that getting children active and outdoors was a positive thing. 10:43:31 AM DAVID NEES, SELF, ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), offered some history of recess and physical education in public schools. He relayed that physical activity was important but worried about the cost of paying trained, licensed professionals to instruct children. He shared that poorly taught physical education could be detrimental to students. He stressed the need for clear language in the bill that recognized the difference between physical education and recess as ways for children to be physically active. 10:46:59 AM Co-Chair MacKinnon asked whether he was advocating that the bill call for licensed professionals to administer physical education to students. Mr. Nees thought that programs in the state's schools should be reviewed by a licensed professional to ensure that the curriculum was safe. 10:47:44 AM Co-Chair MacKinnon CLOSED public testimony. 10:48:07 AM Vice-Chair Micciche discussed the zero fiscal note. SB 200 was HEARD and HELD in committee for further consideration.