Celebrate Walk to School Day October 5

Whether it’s the overhaul of your family’s daily routine, the mountainous school supply section at your favorite big box store, the cascading series of “first day” photos in your Facebook feed, or the increased traffic on your daily commute, you have certainly noticed by now that it’s “Back to School” season.

Once upon a time, we knew the school year had started because the order to get outside suddenly came with a sack lunch. The walk to school was with siblings and friends and often involved rushing to make it before the first bell. We meandered home, often finding adventures along the way. In many places, those good old days are gone. Longer distances from home to school, safety concerns, and increases in driving habits have placed many scholars in the backseat of the car to start the day.

On October 5, schools and communities around the world will participate in the 20th annual Walk to School Day, encouraging students to try on a throwback and walk to school. This activity, once the rule rather than the exception, has numerous benefits. Courtesy of Michigan Safe Routes to School, walking to school:

• Encourages physical fitness and healthy habits
• Heightens awareness of traffic, safety, and environmental concerns around schools
• Is an environmentally-friendly and inexpensive activity
• Helps kick-off a community-wide Safe Routes to School initiative
• Is a fun way to spend time with your child, grandchild, or other special young person in your life!

I encourage all SEMCOG members to promote Walk to School Day to their local school districts and help Southeast Michigan’s students experience and create a safe, active lifestyle. Last year, 122 schools in our region participated, including schools from all seven counties. Southeast Michigan student participation accounted for 54 percent of the statewide total. We would love to see even more this year.

More information on how to sign up and organize is available here. If you know of a great Walk to School Day event happening or are helping to organize one, please let us know.

Year round, SEMCOG works with Southeast Michigan communities to adopt Safe Routes to Schools programs that add safety, convenience, and fun to walking and biking to school.