Gateway to Fitness
Program Background
The “Gateway to Fitness” program was piloted
in 2003 at the Bayview Hunter’s Point Beacon Center
through an innovative partnership among the San Francisco
Health Plan, Team Up for Youth (an intermediary group set
up to promote fitness activities among young people) and
the San Francisco Beacon Initiative, a citywide after-school
program based in public schools. The pilot program served
primarily an African-American, low-income youth population
and proved successful in providing a variety of physical
activities and nutrition information to a small test group
of youth. Learnings from the pilot will be incorporated
in taking the program to scale.
Currently, the Beacon Initiative has partnered with Kaiser
Permanente to collaborate on a citywide rollout of the
“Gateway to Fitness” program in 2005 at all
eight Beacon Centers. With a focus on youth development
that includes an array of after-school recreational and
nutrition programs, as well as services for parents, the
Beacons are a strong platform for obesity prevention.
Collectively, eight Beacon Centers serve nearly 8,000
children, youth and adults across San Francisco, reaching
a primarily low-income, racially and ethnically diverse
youth population that includes African-American, Latino
and Asian American youth. Centers are located in Bayview-Hunter’s
Point, Chinatown, the Mission District, Visitacion Valley,
OMI/Excelsior, Sunset, Richmond and Western Addition.
Program Goals
• To increase the physical activity of youth age
11-15 years old who are at-risk or are overweight through
participation in a variety of community-based youth sports
and recreation programs. After initial exposure to sports
through the “Gateway” program, youth can continue
to participate at the Beacon.
• To provide culturally-appropriate nutrition education
through a hands-on cooking class and hands-on food preparation.
• To foster parental support and involvement through
joint activities and parent-focused events such as parent/child
recreational events, awards celebrations, nutritious group
dinners, and educational workshops.
Program Enrollment
• Physicians refer youth at risk of obesity to the
nearest Beacon Center.
• To avoid stigmatizing youth at risk of obesity,
Beacon Centers also recruit other Beacon youth to participate
in the program.
Program Evaluation
All Beacon Centers are currently undergoing a comprehensive
evaluation by Resource Development Associates. A specific
pre- and post- assessment will be performed on participants
in the “Gateway” program, to assess outcomes
and to share learnings with the field. A follow-up assessment
will be conducted a year later to measure the long-term
impact of the program.
Join the Gateway to Fitness program at a Beacon
Center near you!
We are currently in our Spring 06 session. Click here
to read about the Gateway celebration event from the Fall
06 session.
