Alexandria School Receives Healthy Kids Grant For Physical Activity

ALEXANDRIA, VA — An Alexandria school is one of 11 Northern Virginia recipients of a grant for programs to boost students' nutrition, physical activity or mental health.

The 10 schools and one educational foundation collectively received $19,130 in Healthy Kids Grants from the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia, a charity seeking to improve equity in the region.

The grants are in response to concerns about declining physical and mental health among youth. The foundation's own Shape of Youth Mental Health report in 2023 showed how mental health concerns are increasing among teens.

The Alexandria recipient is Naomi L. Brooks Elementary School. The $2,000 grant will go toward a program focusing on fourth and fifth graders walking or exercising for 10 minutes on three of five days each week. Nutrition lessons on healthy food choices are also continuing at the school.

Other recipients include Bonnie Brae Elementary School and Cedar Lane School in Fairfax County; Briar Woods High School, Cool Spring Elementary School, Smarts Middle School and Stone Bridge High School in Loudoun County; the Falls Church Education Foundation supporting Falls Church City Public Schools; Jefferson Middle School and Washington-Lee High School in Arlington; and Woodbridge Senior High School in Prince William County.

The grants were provided through the foundation’s Permanent Fund for Northern Virginia, a permanent endowment responding to needs around the region. Over 14 years, the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia has provided more than $200,000 in Healthy Kids Grants.