BACKGROUND:Frameworks such as the WSCC model provide evidence-based guidance for addressing school health at the school, district, and regional level. However, frameworks do not implement themselves; they require the mobilization and collaboration of stakeholders within communities and an understanding of the unique resources and barriers within each context. Furthermore, addressing school health presents a complex systems problem. METHODS: Community-based system dynamics (CBSD) is a participatory approach for engaging communities in understanding and changing complex systems. We used a descriptive multiple case study design to evaluate how and why CBSD was used as a tool for stakeholders to engage with the complexity of school health. RESULTS:We analyzed 3 cases to understand how these methods were used to enhance collaboration, analysis, and community action at multiple levels, including in 2 school districts, with a city-wide stakeholder committee, and with a group of high school students. CONCLUSIONS: Community-based system dynamics presents a promising approach for building shared language and ownership among stakeholders, tailoring to local community contexts, and mobilizing stakeholders for action based on new system insights. We close with a discussion of unique opportunities and challenges of expanding the use of CBSD in the field of school health.

Date Presented 04/02/2022 This needs assessment, in partnership with the National Center on Health, Physical Activity, and Disability, found that adults who interact with children with disabilities know that physical activity is important, but finding these opportunities is not easy. The barriers found for engaging in inclusive physical activity include local opportunities and knowing how to find these resources. Responses indicate that creating online resources and training may help overcome these challenges. Primary Author and Speaker: Allison Farrell Contributing Authors: Amanda K. Giles

Introduction Physical activity has positive health benefits across the lifespan including reduced rates of chronic disease. Despite having ample availability of outdoor space for physical activity in the Appalachian Mountain region, there are low rates of physical activity along with high rates of sedentary time and increased prevalence of overweight individuals across all age groups. Therefore, there is a need to understand the factors that influence family’s physical activity and sedentary time. Purpose To assess whether parental attitudes and behaviors influence children’s physical activity and sedentary time. Methods The current study was a secondary analysis of the baseline data from a pilot study of a pediatrician prescription program for outdoor physical activity. Parents ( N = 70) with children aged 5–13 years living in a county served by a single-pediatrician office completed surveys in the pediatrician’s office during a well-child visit. The survey included questions related to parental attitudes toward children’s physical activity and the physical activity and sedentary time performed by the parent and their child. Results Parent sedentary time was the only factor that had an impact on child sedentary time, with 18% of the variance in children’s sedentary time being explained by parent sedentary time. No factors predicted children’s physical activity. Implications To decrease child sedentary time, interventions should focus on reducing parental and joint parent–child sedentary time.