Description of the Design and Implementation of a School-Based Obesity Prevention Program Addressing Needs of Middle School Students

ABSTRACT

This article describes the design and implementation of a school-based obesity prevention program, the successes associated with its implementation, and challenges with development and application of the program's curriculum base. The program is described, including purpose and goals, content and structure of the curriculum, type and training of personnel, and budgetary concerns. Formative program evaluation results were reviewed, including whether the target population was reached, whether the implementation followed the content and structure originally designed, revisions made to the implementation process and curriculum, feedback and reactions from instructors, school personnel, and students, and an overview of strengths and limitations of the program. Recommendations for others considering implementation of school-based prevention programs in real-time settings are offered. Future research expanding and refining the program and its curriculum is planned, using a community-based participatory research approach.

KEYWORDS:

• Pediatric obesity
• pediatric overweight
• obesity prevention
• middle school
• school health

The authors would like to acknowledge the input of Phaedra Yount and Jon Gregan in the creation of this manuscript.