Interview with Vivica Kraak
Nutrition and Physical Activity Advisor of
Save the Children in Washington, D.C.
 What prompted you to be an advocate and champion of children’s health?
I have always loved working with children and have been involved in promoting healthy lifestyles and obesity prevention programs over the past seven years. Save the Children partners with rural school districts to implement the physical activity component of the after-school CATCH Kids Club (CKC) program in 12 states.
When did you adopt the CATCH Program and what prompted you to do so?
In 2005, Save the Children created the CHANGE (Creating Healthy, Active and Nurturing Growing-up Environments) Program to increase children’s access to regular physical activity and healthy snacks in the after-school setting. We conducted a qualitative study in several states that confirmed our observations that low-income children living in rural regions were disproportionately affected by obesity. They had few places to play safely and they had limited access to healthy snacks during and out of school. Even rural children were going home and spending too much time in front of the television. We adopted the CKC physical activity curriculum because it was a reliable, tested, and effective model to provide elementary school-aged children with 30 minutes of physical activity. We selected it because we agreed with the CATCH philosophy and structure that includes a warm-up, non-competitive games, and a cool-down. We also liked the variety of games to choose from in the different CATCH kits, they keep children engaged and active.
Describe notable changes since implementing CATCH and how you know CATCH is working.
Children are having fun, their participation in CATCH gives them a good workout, and it helps them to achieve the one hour of daily physical activity recommended by the federal government. We have also observed that both the healthy snack and CATCH physical activity components of our CHANGE Program improved children’s attendance in the after-school programs, helped them focus on their reading during our Literacy Program, and reduced the need for behavioral management interventions.
What are the keys to your success?
Investing in a complete CATCH training for our field staff was a key factor to our success. It helped them effectively provide oversight for the CKC program as it is intended to be implemented. Providing frequent refresher trainings for our partner field staff who we work with through a train-the-trainer model was also an important factor. The refresher trainings help ensure that the CATCH Program integrity is maintained.
What advice can you offer for those just beginning and for those who have already implemented the CATCH Program.
Whoever is implementing the CKC Program should frequently refer back to the training guide and the basic goals and objectives. It is important for instructors to take the time to learn and become very familiar with all of the games in the different CATCH kits. This will help to keep children fully engaged and ensure smooth transitions between activities. It is easy to fall back on a few favorite activities which may not effectively hold children’s interest.
What was your most significant barrier and how did you overcome the challenge?
Several of our field staff trained in CATCH were recently laid off due to budget cuts. Our organization went through a transition to integrate the job responsibilities of these staff members into a new position that has oversight for both our Literacy and CHANGE Programs. However, this could be a blessing in disguise because it will help our field staff and school partners gain the competency they need to approach after-school programming in a more integrated way.
What has been the reaction from parents, administration, students, and community?
It has been very positive. We need to raise both awareness and support from school district superintendents, teachers, and parents about the essential synergy required to achieve both education and health outcomes for children. It’s not an either/or approach. We need complete buy-in from school administrators to understand that physical activity, nutrition, and health are as important as developing children’s reading skills to help them academically achieve their full potential.
What are your plans for the future? What is your CATCH vision?
During 2010, Save the Children will design a healthy lifestyles and obesity prevention program for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers (from birth to age 5). We plan to use the recently released Early Childhood CATCH kit for the preschoolers and kindergarteners.
Anything else you would like to add?
Thanks for recognizing Save the Children in your newsletter. We have appreciated working collaboratively with the CATCH staff at the University of Texas and Flaghouse. You have been very accessible and receptive. More information about Save the Children’s CHANGE Program is available at www.savethechildren.org/change.
Contact us for more information on CATCH!
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