In the News

Youth Recommend Improvements in Schools

Over the years 2003-2008, the Amy Kohlberg Quinlan Internship Program sponsored by the USF Collaborative for Children, Families and Communities offered teens research-oriented summer internships to study ways to improve the quality of youth development in their communities. As the school year winds to a close, we want to re-cap some of their suggestions for enhancing effective education [more]

Jazz Professor, Composer Awarded One of the Most Prestigious Academic Recognitions in the World

Chuck Owen is the only Guggenheim Fellow in 2009 from a Florida university [more]

Pedometer and Social Learning Intervention for 5th Grade Students at Bryan Elementary School in Plant City, Florida [read more about it]

In the past 20 years, obesity has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. In Florida an estimated 15 percent of 6-17-year-olds are overweight. Obesity and being overweight are highly prevalent and preventable; it can cause risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and premature death. A factor that leads to obesity is not enough physical activity, and about 50 percent of adolescents ages 12-21 do not engage in physical activity. In this study the effects of a pedometer and self-efficacy program on physical activity of students at the 5th grade level attending a largely Hispanic, Title I school will be analyzed. Data from the project will be used to enhance current or create future interventions for increasing physical activity for school children and form the basis of a district-wide pedometer intervention for 5th graders.