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Exercise and Your Brain

Young people will understand that the benefits of exercise go beyond their physical well-being. Exercise helps reduce stress, lift moods and improves your ability to think.

9-14 Years Old

What You Need

• Your Brain After Exercise Tracking Sheet (one copy for each student)

Healthy Families Newsletter

English (pdf)

Spanish (pdf)

Somali (pdf)

Hmong (pdf)

To find out how this health safety lesson fits Physical Education and Health Education standards click here .

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Lesson Introduction & Overview

Recent research has found that exercise, particularly aerobic activity that involves an element of coordination, has benefits for young people that go far beyond fitness.

Aerobic activity is any physical activity that increases your heart rate and breathing. It helps improve your heart and lung fitness. Some examples include brisk walking, hiking, jogging/running, biking, swimming, rowing, jumping rope, dancing and aerobics class.

Physical activity has many benefits. In addition to helping build strong bones and muscles, regular physical activity can:

• help maintain a healthy weight
• reduce the risk for heart disease, diabetes, obesity, certain cancers and joint conditions
• reduce levels of anxiety and stress
• improve your self-esteem and confidence
• help improve concentration and memory
• help maintain good blood pressure and cholesterol levels
• give you an overall feeling of well-being
• build endurance and increase your metabolism
• improve your ability to do daily activities
• help you relax and sleep better.

Studies have found that young people who participate in even 10 minutes of exercise before a test or other academic activity performed better on those tasks than young people who did not exercise. Other studies have found that young people who participate in physical activity consistently have more academic success than their peers who participate less.

For this lesson, the focus is on empowering young people to exercise regardless of their fitness baseline.

Session One

Ask young people a series of questions about exercise: Do they like it? What kinds of exercise do they do or do they know that other people do? What are some of the benefits of exercise?

Then introduce the Exercise-Brain Connection and highlight the following points: • Exercise is good for your body; it helps keep your heart and other muscles strong, your organs working well and your bones healthy. • Exercise is also good for your mood: exercising can help improve your mood by reducing stress and anxiety. • Exercise is good for your brain! Not as many people know this, but exercise can help you focus, problem solve, and remember information and ideas.

Then explain that over the next week your class/group will be doing a research study of your own. Here are the steps: • Each young person will receive a Your Brain After Exercise tracking sheet . • For one week, young people should rate how well they think they performed on their homework or brain games and track whether or not they exercised beforehand. • You can provide age-appropriate activities such as word finds, cryptograms, Sudoku puzzles, crossword puzzles, jigsaw puzzles or online brain games. A simple internet search will provide a variety of resources! • Encourage young people to exercise for at least 10 minutes sometimes before performing the task, and sometimes not.

Ask young people to take out their tracking sheets . Talk about how the week went, what they noticed, what questions they have.

Then create a bar chart showing the results of your study: • Your X-axis will have two variables: “Yes, I exercised before task” and “No, I did not exercise before task.” • Your Y-axis will have five variables: the ratings on how they think they performed on their assignments. • Find the average of all the ratings for times when they did at least 10 minutes of exercise and make that average the first bar. • Find the average for all the ratings for times when they didn’t do at least 10 minutes of exercise and make that average the second bar. • Talk about what the bar chart shows. Is there a difference? Why do you think that is so? Did you notice a difference for yourself between times when you exercised and when you didn’t?

Remind young people that research has shown that exercise has a positive impact on brain function and encourage them to make exercise part of their regular routine.

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English ,  Spanish , Somali and Hmong so that families can learn about exercise and the brain at home.

Related Activities

Checkout some other fun related activites. See all >

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This site is presented for information only and is not intended to substitute for professional medical advice. Health Powered Kids is a trademark of Allina Health System. Presentation and Design © 2015 Allina Health. All Rights Reserved.

'I conducted global health and policy research in Moshi, Tanzania'

5/17/2024 A&S Communications

Biology & Society, Asian American studies Brooklyn, N.Y.

What was your favorite class and why?  

My favorite class was NS 2600: Introduction to Global Health taught by Professor Jeanne Moseley, where I learned about the impact of social determinants on health, global inequality and health disparities between high-income countries and low-and-middle-income countries. This class inspired me to pursue a global health minor and fueled my passion for eliminating healthcare disparities for marginalized populations and eradicating preventable diseases with cures, treatments and vaccinations. For my Experiential Learning Opportunity (ELO), I had the privilege of conducting global health and policy research during Cornell's Global Health Program for four weeks in Moshi, Tanzania during summer 2022. We collaborated with fourth-year Tanzanian medical students to interview emergency medicine doctors, police, motorcycle drivers and community health workers. We wrote and presented a policy case study that compiled our research, findings and recommended policy solutions on critical gaps in the Tanzanian emergency medical services system; we highlighted issues like the lack of trained first responders, hazardous transportation to the hospital, and limited health insurance coverage that led to poor health outcomes. I was confronted with the ways that structural poverty and infrastructure impacted people’s health outcomes.

What is your main extracurricular activity and why is it important to you? 

As a freshman, I joined the First-Generation Student Union (FGSU), looking for a safe space for students from underrepresented backgrounds like myself. I devoted myself to advocacy and passion for helping fellow students, and I became president of FGSU. We sought to provide social, academic and professional guidance, creating a podcast to share resources and organizing an annual mentorship program that pairs underclassmen with upperclassmen. To provide professional development opportunities, we hosted a professional speaker series with our first-gen alumni network and held a five-part series on networking and consulting. In addition, we collaborated with various groups including the Basic Needs Coalition to provide access to essential needs, Women in Computing at Cornell on intersectional identities in the workplace, school and beyond and FLIP National, a nonprofit organization, to promote equal opportunity for first-generation low-income (FGLI) students in higher education. To unite the community further, we also led social events such as apple and pumpkin picking, crafts, and community dinners. To celebrate the accomplishments of seniors who are the first in their family to graduate college, I also led the planning and execution of the first-generation graduation ceremony. 

Also, during the rise of anti-Asian hate and violence during the COVID-19 pandemic and the Atlanta spa shootings, I noticed a gap in Cornell’s Asian American organizations, which focused more on social and cultural aspects of our identity, and a significant need for a safe space to discuss complex and meaningful sociopolitical topics relevant to the APIDA community. In my junior fall, I reestablished Asian Pacific Americans for Action (APAA), a club that seeks to politically empower and advocate for the needs of APIDA students and further Asian/American activism on campus. I am extremely proud of our growth as a club, which has since organized two fundraisers and built coalitions with other groups of color and social justice groups to build solidarity and community. We have educated students with teach-ins on the history of Asian American activism, labor, colonization, imperialism, civic engagement, political participation and affirmative action. In March 2024, I also organized a group of 15 Cornell students to attend the annual East Coast Asian American Student Union Conference at Yale University, participating in workshops and engaging with students from 50+ other universities. For our efforts, we received the “Outstanding Contribution to the APIDA Community” award two years in a row at the APIDA Gala from the Asian & Asian American Center.

What have you accomplished as a Cornell student that you are most proud of?

As a first-generation and low-income student, study abroad has been an extremely formative, eye-opening and integral part of my Cornell experience. I had the privilege of participating in the Global Health Summer program in Moshi, Tanzania, the Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS) program in Copenhagen, Denmark for a semester, and the Heat Waves and Global Health spring break program in London, United Kingdom. In Copenhagen, DIS’s unique classes and approach to experiential and hands-on learning allowed me to partake in weekly field studies, learn how to do surgical knots and different types of sutures, how to identify organs and basic pathology on CT scans and ultrasounds, talk to healthcare practitioners about their specialties and learn about different healthcare systems. I joined the students of color affinity group and student media team as a photographer. I loved being able to capture personal memories with my friends and host family. I lived in a homestay in a suburban area, which allowed me to fully immerse myself into Danish society. One of my fondest memories was when my host family organized a traditional Danish birthday for me. My host mom and sister baked traditional Danish layer cake and birthday buns and decorated the house with Danish flags. I invited my friends over for a hyggeligt time. I also went to Legoland and the Hans Christian Andersen museum with my host family! 

In London, I learned about how climate change, particularly heat waves, has greatly affected people of color in working class neighborhoods. We also learned about how race has shaped environmental injustice, access to green spaces, social housing, and urban living. 

In Moshi, I challenged myself to navigate through unfamiliar culture norms and hyper-vigilance as an Asian woman. I reflected on my worldview and preconceived notions of Tanzania. I’m proud to say that I was the best Swahili speaker in my cohort and I loved interacting with locals, especially bargaining! My experiences have profoundly broadened my worldview and instilled a critical approach to global health. Seeking to understand how others experience their lives facilitated a deep understanding of cultural differences, allowing me to connect with individuals of entirely different backgrounds with empathy, compassion and an open-minded attitude. These experiences strengthened my cross-cultural, interpersonal and communication skills. The most meaningful part was building relationships and learning about each other’s cultures. I recognized that our similarities unite us much more than our differences set us apart.

Who or what influenced your Cornell education the most?     

The College of Arts and Sciences gave me the freedom of exploring my educational interests and I enjoyed its interdisciplinary approach to learning. I also took three semesters of Mandarin Chinese, which developed my native fluency. The biology and society, Asian American studies, anthropology and global health departments and faculty have greatly informed my scholarship, thinking and personal development. They helped me become more well-read, gain a better understanding of my identity and comprehend where I stand in the world. In addition, ethnic studies classes helped me understand intersectional identities and the larger structural forces that shaped my and others’ experiences in America.

Where do you dream to be in 10 years?

In 10 years, I dream that I have successfully become a physician, after residency and fellowship and continued with my journey of advocacy and learning. I hope to join Doctors without Borders and provide free services to underserved communities. I can also see myself engaged in public and global health, perhaps through research and perhaps with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Every year, our faculty nominate graduating Arts & Sciences students to be featured as part of our Extraordinary Journeys series.  Read more about the Class of 202 4.

We Need Anthropologists Everywhere—Especially in AI

'Real world issues often don’t fit into the neat boxes of disciplines'

Einaudi seed grants grow international collaborations

Student spotlight: Jason Ludwig

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• Education, training and skills

Age limits introduced to protect children in RSHE

New age ratings to be introduced on Relationships, Sex and Health Education content in schools to ensure it is appropriately and sensitively taught.

Children will be protected from inappropriate teaching on sensitive topics thanks to new proposals from the government. 

Following multiple reports of disturbing materials being used in Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) lessons, the Department for Education has published updated guidance that will ensure content is factual, appropriate and that children have the capacity to fully understand everything they are being taught.

Parents will have the right to see the resources that are being used to teach their children about relationships, health and sex in all circumstances and new age limits will be introduced so that children are not introduced to content they may not have the maturity to understand.

Sex education will not be taught before Year 5, and at that point from a purely scientific standpoint.

The contested theory of gender identity will not be taught and the guidance confirms copyright law should not be a barrier to sharing curriculum materials with parents – with the updated curriculum open for an eight week consultation from today (16 May).

At secondary school pupils will learn about legally ‘protected’ characteristics, such as sexual orientation and gender reassignment, but the updated guidance is clear that schools should not teach about the concept of gender identity.

In light of the Cass Review , it is important that schools take a cautious approach to teaching about this sensitive topic, and do not use any materials that present contested views as fact, including the view that gender is a spectrum. This is in line with the Department’s gender questioning guidance, which also takes a cautious approach to assist teachers in ensuring they are acting in the best interests of children.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said:

Parents rightly trust that when they send their children to school, they are kept safe and will not be exposed to disturbing content that is inappropriate for their age. That’s why I was horrified to hear reports of this happening in our classrooms last year. I will always act swiftly to protect our children and this new guidance will do exactly that, while supporting teachers to teach these important topics sensitively and giving parents access to curriculum content if they wish.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said:

This updated guidance puts protecting children at its heart, and enshrines parents’ right to know what their children are being taught. It will support schools with how and when to teach often difficult and sensitive topics, leaving no doubt about what is appropriate to teach pupils at every stage of school. Parents can be reassured once and for all their children will only learn age-appropriate content.

Schools should ensure that RSHE teaching materials are available to parents and that parents are aware of what is being taught.

New content in the guidance, mirroring letters sent by the Education Secretary to schools over the past year, makes it clear that schools should make materials available to parents, and clarifies how copyright legislation gives them scope to do so.

The guidance also now includes additional content on suicide prevention in the secondary health and wellbeing section, including equipping pupils to recognise when they or their peers need help.

The guidance has also been strengthened to help young people to understand the benefits of rationing time spent online and the impact on their wellbeing, and the serious risks of viewing content that promotes self-harm and suicide.

Following reports of schools seeing rising levels of harmful misogynistic behaviour, the guidance now includes a dedicated section on sexual harassment and sexual violence, which covers some specific types of abusive behaviour that were not explicitly discussed previously, such as stalking, as well as advice for teachers about how to address misogynistic online influencers. 

James Grimes, Head of Prevention at Gambling with Lives said:

We welcome this guidance as DfE is clearly learning from gambling-related deaths and lived experience of addiction. Young people deserve the full picture about the impact of addictive gambling products and the link to mental health harms and suicide.

Jason Elsom, Chief Executive of Parentkind:

Our 2023 polling of parents relating to sex education revealed the very serious concerns of parents. We are grateful to the time that the Government has given to understanding and addressing those concerns during the past twelve months, and fully support this commitment to ensuring parents are well-informed and actively involved in their children’s education when it comes to sensitive topics such as Relationships and Sex Education (RSHE). As the first educators of their children, parents deserve full transparency and access to the curriculum and resources used in schools. This initiative to strengthen the partnership between schools and parents will foster a collaborative environment, ensuring that children receive comprehensive, balanced, and well-informed education while respecting parents’ roles and concerns. We believe that open communication and shared understanding are key to promoting the wellbeing and safety of all children.

Dr Alison Penny, Director of the Childhood Bereavement Network said:

Most children will face the death of someone important by the time they leave school – the big feelings this brings can leave them feeling isolated. Consistent evidence from recent surveys shows that children, young people, parents and teachers support grief education being covered sensitively in school, aligned with children’s wider learning opportunities at home. This empowers them to cope with their own experiences, and be better allies for their grieving friends, building a compassionate community around the next generation.

Louis Appleby, Chair of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy Advisory Group said:

It’s vital that young people are able to understand thoughts of suicide or self-harm that they may be feeling, and that schools are confident in addressing this most sensitive of subjects. The new guidance aims to break down the shame that can make it hard to ask for help and, crucially, places an emphasis on safe ways of coping.

RSHE is vital in equipping students with the knowledge to make informed and ethical decisions about their wellbeing, health and relationships, setting them up for the future.

The updated guidance, which was informed by an independent panel, follows a thorough review by the government in response to disturbing reports that inappropriate material is being taught in some schools.

The draft guidance is now open to consultation. When final, the guidance will be statutory and schools will be expected to follow it.

DfE media enquiries

Central newsdesk - for journalists 020 7783 8300

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• About Early Care and Education
• Making Changes in ECE
• Public Health Strategy
• ECE Data and Statistics
• What Others Are Doing
• Early Care and Education Resources
• Advancing Farm to ECE
• Advancing Early Child Nutrition in ECE
• ECE State Licensing
• High-Impact Obesity Prevention Standards

Strategies for Early Care and Education

• Most young children spend time in care outside of their home.
• State and local organizations can implement policies and activities that improve nutrition, physical activity, and breastfeeding in early care and education (ECE) settings.

About 12.5 million US children up to age 5 who are not yet in kindergarten are in a nonparental care arrangement, such as daycare, at least once a week. That's 3 in 5 children younger than 5. The number of children in ECE programs makes it one of the best settings to help young children build a foundation for healthy living.

High-quality ECE programs positively influence a child's social, emotional, educational, physical, and economic outcomes later in life. Children affected by poverty may benefit even more from high-quality ECE programs. Activities to support healthy behaviors, healthy growth, and development in ECE settings include increasing access to healthy foods, breastfeeding, physical activity, and Farm to ECE .

States and communities can support children's healthy growth and development in ECE at three levels: state systems, ECE programs, and ECE providers. This approach helps ECE programs improve their policies and practices.

* Designates short-term activities that may take 1 to 2 years.

+ Designates long-term activities that may take up to 5 years.

How long an activity takes depends on what background work is done. The designations assume no background work is done. Over time, states and localities can build on this work to maximize reach and effectiveness.

Potential activities from CDC's Spectrum of Opportunities

Partnerships

Complete a partnership assessment.

• State partners may include task forces or advisory committees with early childhood foundations, state ECE professional organizations, state child nutrition program representatives, and ECE programs.
• Also consider connecting with state breastfeeding coalitions and state Farm to School or Farm to ECE coalitions.
• Local partners may include regional or county representatives from Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) staff, Head Start programs, organizations that sponsor the Child and Adult Care Food Program, childcare resource and referral agencies, Cooperative Extension Services, and ECE programs and providers.

Begin with the ECE Quick Start Action Guide with its comprehensive roadmap and series of worksheets.*

Identify areas of focus within CDC's Spectrum of Opportunities. Determine what assets, resources, and state activities exist in each area.

• States can develop an action plan that builds on existing work to advance one or more Spectrum areas that are most feasible.*
• Local communities can determine which state assets and resources to build on. Communities can identify priority areas or topics and work with ECE programs in their jurisdiction to make improvements.*

Work with state and local partners to engage ECE programs in your state or community:

• Use learning collaboratives or other models to engage state and local groups to work on improving a specific topic area such as nutrition, physical activity, breastfeeding or Farm to ECE.*
• Reduce engagement barriers, such as cost, technology requirements, and time to engage in trainings, across groups of ECE programs. +

Build equity into state and local ECE work.

• Expand and diversify ECE coalitions to include ECE care providers and various cultural and socio-economic groups.*
• Create cultural and linguistic translations of support and guidance products that work for the populations served.*
• Participate in federal programs that reimburse ECE providers caring for children in families that meet income eligibility, such as your state's Child and Adult Care Food Program and Child Care and Development Fund . +
• Use a health equity assessment tool, such as those in the Health Equity Resources section below, to inform the work.*
• Use data sets, such as the Child Opportunity Index , to identify communities and areas with the greatest health disparities for the program's focus.*

Activities for states and local communities by spectrum area

Licensing and administrative regulations.

Each state sets ECE regulations, making regulations an important area for potential policy interventions. Use your state's ECE licensing scorecard to know what obesity prevention standards are included. Learn more about state licensing efforts and ways to advance this Spectrum area .*

Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS)

QRIS is a systematic approach to assessing, communicating, and improving quality in ECE programs. See if your state has incorporated any of the 47 high-impact obesity prevention best practices into its state QRIS system.*

Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)

This nutrition program from the US Department of Agriculture can help reimburse participating ECE programs for supporting breastfeeding parents and serving healthy meals and snacks to eligible children in their care. You can contact your state CACFP program for additional information.

• State : Identify ECE programs participating in CACFP in your state and any gaps in participation associated with geographically and socially vulnerable areas.* CACFP maps provide information about CACFP participation in select states. As needed, increase participation through activities such as education or promotional materials, technical assistance, and outreach. +
• Local: Educate eligible ECE programs in your community about the CACFP program.* Consider efforts to increase participation, such as mentoring or outreach efforts. +

Professional development

Professional development refers to ongoing professional training for ECE providers. Professionals learn about best practices and advance their knowledge and skills on a topic.

• State: Inventory professional development modules or trainings available to help ECE providers learn about nutrition, physical activity, breastfeeding, Farm to ECE, or other relevant topics. Also, providers may create or update trainings as needed.*
• Local: Promote state modules or trainings for ECE providers in your community.*

Promote the use of modules and trainings to reach as many ECE providers as possible. + Reduce common professional development barriers, such as cost, language, and distance.

Statewide intervention programs

Evidence-based interventions can help ECE programs improve their polices, practices, and nutrition and physical activity offerings. See the SNAP-ED Toolkit for examples such as GO NAPSACC , CATCH Early Childhood, Cooking Matters, and Harvest for Healthy Kids.

• State: Identify an evidence-based intervention that all ECE programs in your state can implement to help improve nutrition and physical activity policies and practices. Work with ECE programs in your state to use the intervention. +
• Local: Determine if your state has an evidence-based intervention. If so, work with ECE programs in your community to use the intervention or tool. If not, consider if GO NAPSACC or another intervention is right for your community. +

Statewide recognition programs

State-branded recognition programs identify ECE programs that meet criteria on a particular topic. Many states have breastfeeding-friendly , healthy childcare, or other nutrition or physical activity recognition programs.

• State: Find out if your state has a recognition program. Work with partners to implement or increase use, as appropriate. + If your state does not have a program, consider working with your state’s ECE partners to create one.
• Local: Find out if your state has any ECE recognition programs. If it does, provide information and encourage community ECE programs not yet participating to enroll or consider taking part in a pilot. + If not, consider working with your state’s ECE partners to create one. +

Statewide technical assistance networks

State technical assistance (TA) networks provide ECE programs with individualized help on a variety of topics. Common TA providers include staff at state childcare resource and referral agencies, local health departments, childcare health consultants, SNAP-Ed coordinators, and ECE trainers.

• State: Identify existing groups that provide TA to ECE programs.*
• Work with TA networks and TA providers to increase knowledge and build ECE program capacity on "topics" such as nutrition, physical activity, breastfeeding, outdoor learning, and Farm to ECE. If your state usesan evidence-based intervention or a recognition program, encourage TA providers to use the state-sponsored intervention or recognition programs with ECE programs they serve. +
• Local: Find out who provides support and TA to ECE programs in your community.*
• Work with TA networks and TA providers to increase TA on nutrition, physical activity, breastfeeding, outdoor learning, or Farm to ECE. +

Access to healthy environments

Farm to ECE programs provide increased exposure and access to local produce, opportunities to learn about nutrition and agriculture, and hands-on learning through gardening.

• Join or start a Farm to ECE coalition to advance Farm to ECE.*
• Engage local and regional food system and ECE partners. +
• Build capacity through training and TA opportunities. +
• Learn what your state has done to advance Farm to ECE.*
• Connect with state and local Farm to ECE coalitions and partners, work to engage community ECE programs on Farm to ECE, and build capacity through training and TA opportunities. +

Outdoor Learning Environments (OLEs) help young children be more physically active while they play, discover, and connect with nature.

State : Build capacity and knowledge about OLEs through training and TA.

• Find out if there is a state network of professionals who can help design and implement OLEs featuring OLE best practices.*
• Create and distribute resources for professionals from key disciplines such as landscape architects, ECE staff, horticulturalists, ECE licensing professionals, and nature play specialists. These experts can help ECE programs implement high-quality OLEs. +
• Identify what your state has done to increase access to high-quality OLEs.*
• Connect with state and local coalitions and partners and engage ECE programs in your community in OLE through training and TA opportunities. +

Working together

Examples from CDC-supported programs:

Advancing Farm to ECE Provides overview of Farm to ECE and includes short stories from seven states.

Advancing Early Child Nutrition in Early Care and Education Provides overview of Early Child Nutrition in Early Care and Education, how states and communities can advance this strategy, and includes short stories from three states.

New Mexico Early Care and Education Centers Create Lasting Wellness Changes Describes a policy toolkit for putting policy changes into practice.

Making Health Easier: Healthy Changes Start in Preschool Highlights Los Angeles Universal Preschool's efforts to teach children healthy habits by incorporating small, healthy changes that can be made in any classroom.

CDC's Spectrum of Opportunities Framework Describes nine components for states and communities to consider when improving policies, practices, and environments in ECE programs. Related resources include:

• Spectrum of Opportunities for Obesity Prevention in Early Care and Education is a summary graphic with examples of potential activities in the nine spectrum areas.
• Quick Start Action Guide for Obesity Prevention in ECE provides action steps to plan new or expand existing efforts to promote healthy eating, physical activity, and breastfeeding in ECE. Includes partnership worksheets and can be adapted for local use.
• Also see Go NAPSACC in the Spectrum of Opportunities .

Strategies to Prevent and Manage Obesity in the ECE Setting Includes background on the ECE setting, key CDC publications, and resources .

Early Care and Education State Indicator Report (2023) Highlights how states have advanced seven Spectrum of Opportunities areas. Use to understand existing efforts to improve ECE programs and help ECE providers implement nutrition, physical activity, breastfeeding, and Farm to ECE support and reduce screen time.

Farm to Preschool: Local Food and Learning in Early Care and Education Settings Fact sheet includes tips for growing a program.

Healthy Kids, Healthy Future Resources for ECE trainers, providers, and state and local leaders.

• Diversity Data Kids: Child Opportunity Index
• Mapping CACFP Participation
• CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index

Health equity resources

• Diversity Data Kids: Early Childhood Equity Reports, State Examples, and Resources
• Equity Starts Early: Addressing Racial Inequities in Child Care and Early Education Policies (Executive Summary)
• National Farm to School Network: Racial and Social Equity Assessment Tool for Farm to School Program and Policy
• Vision and Key Strategies to Advance Farm to Early Care and Education

Cross-cutting areas

Communication tips to support program efforts.

Evaluation framework for making evaluations useful, feasible, ethical, accurate, and culturally responsive.

Health equity tools to help remove barriers to health.

Definitions

CDC's Spectrum of Opportunities is sometimes called CDC Spectrum Areas. It offers nine avenues for states and communities to consider when working to improve nutrition, physical activity, and breastfeeding support. The Spectrum Areas can be used in all types of ECE programs to meet best practice standards for national obesity prevention.

Early care and education includes many types of childcare programs, such as child care centers, family child care homes (also known as in-home child care), preschool and prekindergarten programs, and Head Start and Early Head Start.

Farm to ECE is a set of strategies and activities that offers children in ECE programs increased access to local produce, opportunities to learn about nutrition and agriculture, and hands-on learning through gardening.

National Caring for Our Children Standards includes 47 best practice standards that can have a high impact on obesity. The standards can be used to improve nutrition, physical activity, breastfeeding, and screen time in ECE programs. States can include these standards in ECE work to promote the development of healthy habits in young children.

Outdoor learning environments promote nature-based outdoor spaces for ECE programs to support children's physical activity and healthy eating, outdoor learning, social-emotional development, and mental health.

Additional priority strategies

Breastfeeding Continuity of Care

Increasing Physical Activity Through Community Design

Family Healthy Weight Programs

Food Service and Nutrition Guidelines

Voucher Incentives and Produce Prescription Programs

Early Care and Education

Early care and education practices can support healthy eating and physical activity when children are young and perhaps for a lifetime.

For Everyone

Public health.

'I conducted global health and policy research in Moshi, Tanzania'

Kelly Su: Biology & Society & Asian American studies

A&S Communications

Biology & Society & Asian American studies Brooklyn, N.Y.

What was your favorite class and why?  

My favorite class was NS 2600: Introduction to Global Health taught by Professor Jeanne Moseley, where I learned about the impact of social determinants on health, global inequality and health disparities between high-income countries and low-and-middle-income countries. This class inspired me to pursue a global health minor and fueled my passion for eliminating healthcare disparities for marginalized populations and eradicating preventable diseases with cures, treatments and vaccinations. For my Experiential Learning Opportunity (ELO), I had the privilege of conducting global health and policy research during Cornell's Global Health Program for four weeks in Moshi, Tanzania during summer 2022. We collaborated with fourth-year Tanzanian medical students to interview emergency medicine doctors, police, motorcycle drivers and community health workers. We wrote and presented a policy case study that compiled our research, findings and recommended policy solutions on critical gaps in the Tanzanian emergency medical services system; we highlighted issues like the lack of trained first responders, hazardous transportation to the hospital and limited health insurance coverage that led to poor health outcomes. I was confronted with the ways that structural poverty and infrastructure impacted people’s health outcomes.

What is your main extracurricular activity and why is it important to you? 

As a freshman, I joined the First-Generation Student Union (FGSU), looking for a safe space for students from underrepresented backgrounds like myself. I devoted myself to advocacy and passion for helping fellow students, and I became president of FGSU. We sought to provide social, academic and professional guidance, creating a podcast to share resources and organizing an annual mentorship program that pairs underclassmen with upperclassmen. To provide professional development opportunities, we hosted a professional speaker series with our first-gen alumni network and held a five-part series on networking and consulting. In addition, we collaborated with various groups including the Basic Needs Coalition to provide access to essential needs, Women in Computing at Cornell on intersectional identities in the workplace, school and beyond and FLIP National, a nonprofit organization, to promote equal opportunity for first-generation low-income (FGLI) students in higher education. To unite the community further, we also led social events such as apple and pumpkin picking, crafts and community dinners. To celebrate the accomplishments of seniors who are the first in their family to graduate college, I also led the planning and execution of the first-generation graduation ceremony. 

Also, during the rise of anti-Asian hate and violence during the COVID-19 pandemic and the Atlanta spa shootings, I noticed a gap in Cornell’s Asian American organizations, which focused more on social and cultural aspects of our identity, and a significant need for a safe space to discuss complex and meaningful sociopolitical topics relevant to the APIDA community. In my junior fall, I reestablished Asian Pacific Americans for Action (APAA), a club that seeks to politically empower and advocate for the needs of APIDA students and further Asian/American activism on campus. I am extremely proud of our growth as a club, which has since organized two fundraisers and built coalitions with other groups of color and social justice groups to build solidarity and community. We have educated students with teach-ins on the history of Asian American activism, labor, colonization, imperialism, civic engagement, political participation and affirmative action. In March 2024, I also organized a group of 15 Cornell students to attend the annual East Coast Asian American Student Union Conference at Yale University, participating in workshops and engaging with students from 50+ other universities. For our efforts, we received the “Outstanding Contribution to the APIDA Community” award two years in a row at the APIDA Gala from the Asian & Asian American Center.

What have you accomplished as a Cornell student that you are most proud of?

As a first-generation and low-income student, study abroad has been an extremely formative, eye-opening and integral part of my Cornell experience. I had the privilege of participating in the Global Health Summer program in Moshi, Tanzania, the Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS) program in Copenhagen, Denmark, for a semester, and the Heat Waves and Global Health spring break program in London, United Kingdom. In Copenhagen, DIS’s unique classes and approach to experiential and hands-on learning allowed me to partake in weekly field studies, learn how to do surgical knots and different types of sutures, how to identify organs and basic pathology on CT scans and ultrasounds, talk to healthcare practitioners about their specialties and learn about different healthcare systems. I joined the students of color affinity group and student media team as a photographer. I loved being able to capture personal memories with my friends and host family. I lived in a homestay in a suburban area, which allowed me to fully immerse myself into Danish society. One of my fondest memories was when my host family organized a traditional Danish birthday for me. My host mom and sister baked traditional Danish layer cake and birthday buns and decorated the house with Danish flags. I invited my friends over for a hyggeligt (cozy) time. I also went to Legoland and the Hans Christian Andersen museum with my host family! 

In London, I learned about how climate change, particularly heat waves, has greatly affected people of color in working class neighborhoods. We also learned about how race has shaped environmental injustice, access to green spaces, social housing and urban living. 

In Moshi, I challenged myself to navigate through unfamiliar culture norms and hyper-vigilance as an Asian woman. I reflected on my worldview and preconceived notions of Tanzania. I’m proud to say that I was the best Swahili speaker in my cohort and I loved interacting with locals, especially bargaining! My experiences have profoundly broadened my worldview and instilled a critical approach to global health. Seeking to understand how others experience their lives facilitated a deep understanding of cultural differences, allowing me to connect with individuals of entirely different backgrounds with empathy, compassion and an open-minded attitude. These experiences strengthened my cross-cultural, interpersonal and communication skills. The most meaningful part was building relationships and learning about each other’s cultures. I recognized that our similarities unite us much more than our differences set us apart.

Who or what influenced your Cornell education the most?     

The College of Arts & Sciences gave me the freedom of exploring my educational interests and I enjoyed its interdisciplinary approach to learning. I also took three semesters of Mandarin Chinese, which developed my native fluency. The biology and society, Asian American studies, anthropology and global health departments and faculty have greatly informed my scholarship, thinking and personal development. They helped me become more well-read, gain a better understanding of my identity and comprehend where I stand in the world. In addition, ethnic studies classes helped me understand intersectional identities and the larger structural forces that shaped my and others’ experiences in America.

Where do you dream to be in 10 years?

In 10 years, I dream that I have successfully become a physician, after residency and fellowship and continued with my journey of advocacy and learning. I hope to join Doctors Without Borders and provide free services to underserved communities. I can also see myself engaged in public and global health, perhaps through research and perhaps with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Every year, our faculty nominate graduating Arts & Sciences students to be featured as part of our Extraordinary Journeys series.  Read more about the Class of 202 4.

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