American Heart Association Letter Regarding Chicago Public Schools PE Waiver

October 19, 2011

Jean-Claude Brizard
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools
125 South Clark St., 5th Floor
Chicago, IL 60603


Dear Mr. Brizard,

I am writing on behalf of the American heart Association and the American Stroke Association to respectfully urge you not to apply to the Illinois State Board of Education for a renewal of CPS’ waiver from state physical education requirements. Although you have the unenviable task of prioritizing the allocation of limited resources in the face of limitless needs, we hope that under your leadership, CPS will make a renewed commitment to quality daily PE for all students.

While it would be customary to include reams of pertinent statistics and health information with this type of request, I believe that is unnecessary in this instance. Surely, having been around kids most of your professional life, you have seen the devastating impact childhood obesity and related health problems are having on children and communities everywhere. Likewise, I am certain that you are already aware of the growing body of evidence linking children’s behavior and their ability to learn with their overall fitness and their levels of physical activity.

Simply put, efforts to cut PE in the face of tight budgets may seem penny-wise, but they are most certainly pound-foolish. Clearly there is an inversely proportional relationship between public education and healthcare spending and as our obesity related health care costs go up, fewer resources will be available to fund education. Investing in quality PE is ultimately important not only as a public health strategy, but also as a way to preserve and strengthen our public education system.

We sincerely hope that under new management, the Chicago Public Schools choose to embrace quality daily PE for all students, rather than taking the backward step of applying for further PE waivers. We are ready to stand with you and to help CPS however we can should you decide to lead our schools in this direction.

Please contact me at your convenience should you have any questions or requests. Thank you very much for your consideration in this mater.

Respectfully,

Mark E. Peysakhovich
Senior Director of Government Relations
American Heart Association and American Stroke Association
208 S. LaSalle Street, Suite 1500
Chicago, IL 60604
Direct: 312-476-6644
Email: mep@heart.org