U.S. Department of Education: Carol M. White Physical Education Program

The Carol M. White Physical Education Program (PEP) provides grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) and community-based organizations (CBOs) to initiate, expand, and improve physical education for students in grades K-12. Grant recipients must implement programs that help students make progress toward meeting State physical education standards.

This year’s program contains one absolute priority (which must be met in order to apply), three competitive preference priorities, and one invitational priority. The absolute priority is: Programs Designed To Create Quality Physical Education Programs. Under this priority, an applicant is required to develop, expand, or improve its physical education program and address its State’s physical education standards by undertaking the following activities: (1) Instruction in healthy eating habits and good nutrition; and (2) physical fitness activities that must include at least one of the following:

• Fitness education and assessment to help students understand, improve, or maintain their physical well-being
• Instruction in a variety of motor skills and physical activities designed to enhance the physical, mental, and social or emotional development of every student
• Development of, and instruction in, cognitive concepts about motor skills and physical fitness that support a lifelong healthy lifestyle
• Opportunities to develop positive social and cooperative skills through physical activity participation
• Opportunities for professional development for teachers of physical education to stay abreast of the latest research, issues, and trends in the field of physical education

Competitive preference priorities include the following:

• Competitive Preference Priority 1: Partnerships Between Applicants and Supporting Community Entities (Up to 5 additional points). Applicants must include a signed letter of commitment that details: (1) Each partner’s roles and responsibilities in the project; (2) how each partner will contribute to the project, including any contribution to the local match; (3) an assurance that the application was developed after timely and meaningful consultation between the required parties, as defined in this notice; and (4) a commitment to work together to reach the desired goals and outcomes of the project.

  For an LEA applicant, this partnership agreement must include: (1) the LEA; (2) at least one CBO; (3) a local public health entity, as defined in this notice; (4) the LEA’s food service or child nutrition director; and (5) the head of the local government, as defined in this notice.

  For a CBO applicant, the partnership agreement must include: (1) the CBO; (2) a local public health entity; (3) a local organization supporting nutrition or healthy eating; (4) the head of the local government; and (5) the LEA from which the largest number of students expected to participate in the CBO’s project attend.

• Competitive Preference Priority 2: Development of Non-Cognitive Factors (Up to 5 points). Projects that are designed to improve students’ mastery of non-cognitive skills and behaviors (such as academic behaviors, academic mindset, perseverance, self-regulation, social and emotional skills, and approaches toward learning strategies) and enhance student motivation and engagement in learning.
• Competitive Preference Priority 3: Supporting High-Need Students (Up to 5 additional points). Projects designed to improve academic outcomes; learning environments; or both for students in lowest-performing schools.

The invitational priority is to support projects in which physical education or nutrition education programs and practices are supported by research studies that demonstrate evidence of promise. Applicants are encouraged to submit a citation for the study or studies that supports the applicant’s proposed process, strategy, or practice and that the applicant provides as justification that it meets the evidence of promise standard.

Amount: $23,000,000 is available for awards ranging from $200,000-$800,000 each.

Eligibility: LEAs, including charter schools that are considered LEAs under State law, and CBOs, including faith-based organizations provided that they meet the applicable statutory and regulatory requirements. Applicants may not have a current grant under the PEP program.

Link: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/whitephysed/index.html

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