Fayetteville, Arkansas, Feb. 17, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BikeNWA is partnering with All Kids Bike® to launch the Learn-To-Ride bike program in 30 Northwest Arkansas elementary schools. The program, supported by a grant from the Walton Family Foundation at the recommendation of Steuart Walton and Tom Walton, will help approximately 16,000 kindergarten and first grade students learn to ride over the next five years.
“From the beginning, our organization has maintained the key to a long-term cultural shift to biking for transportation is getting kids on bikes,” said Paxton Roberts, BikeNWA’s Executive Director. “Expanding this program to kindergarten and first graders across the region is a huge milestone towards realizing this vision.”
The Learn-To-Ride Program equips schools with everything teachers need to get their students rolling, including Strider® Learn-To-Ride Bikes, helmets, and curriculum.
The All Kids Bike Learn-to-Ride program is currently active in 156 schools in 20 states. This grant will allow it to become a staple in Northwest Arkansas school district’s PE curriculums. Through the program, children in the region will also be able to participate in Learn-to-Ride camps, race series and demonstrations to raise awareness of the PE program and promote early rider education.
“Getting kids active is something we all need to be working toward. One of the best ways to get the kids active is to get them excited about bicycles. A lot of kids simply don’t know how to ride.” Says Ryan McFarland, All Kids Bike Board Member. “By putting bikes into schools and making racks of bikes as common as racks of basketballs, that ensures every kid has the skill of riding a bike. It’s a skill that keeps them active. It’s also a skill that’s going to serve them in life.”
For more information or to apply for the program, visit bikenwa.org/learntoride.
About BikeNWA
BikeNWA’s mission is to educate, inspire, and activate the Northwest Arkansas community to ride bicycles and support the creation of a world-class all ages and abilities network of bicycle infrastructure. By introducing this milestone skill through the school system, the greatest number of children will be reached in the shortest amount of time. To learn more about our work visit www.bikenwa.org.
About the Walton Family Foundation
The Walton Family Foundation is, at its core, a family-led foundation. Three generations of the descendants of our founders, Sam and Helen Walton, and their spouses, work together to lead the foundation and create access to opportunity for people and communities. We work in three areas: improving K-12 education, protecting rivers and oceans and the communities they support, and investing in our home region of Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta. In 2018, the foundation awarded more than $595 million in grants in support of these initiatives. To learn more, visit www.waltonfamilyfoundation.org.
About Strider® Education Foundation and All Kids Bike
All Kids Bike is a national movement led by the Strider® Education Foundation to place Kindergarten PE Learn-To-Ride Programs into public schools for free, using donations from individuals, businesses, and organizations. The Strider Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, was formed in 2017. The Strider Education Foundation believes that learning to ride can help everyone lead a happier and healthier life. Through the development of a proven Learn-To-Ride curriculum and donations of the world’s most advanced training bikes, the nonprofit organization makes riding available, safe, easy, and fun for everyone. For more on All Kids Bike visit https://www.allkidsbike.org.
Contact
All Kids Bike
(605) 956-3877
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