INDIANAPOLIS – The District of Columbia Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) department has joined a growing family of recreation sites participating in USA Track & Field’s signature community outreach program, RunJumpThrow, USATF announced Monday.
 
The DPR serves the District of Columbia’s nearly 700,000 residents through a range of programs and services, from athletic activities to lifestyle and therapeutic programs.
 
USATF and The Hershey Company teamed up to create RunJumpThrow (RJT), a hands-on learning program that gets kids excited about physical activity by introducing them to basic running, jumping and throwing skills through track and field.
 
DPR joins Lets Move! Active Schools as programs implementing RunJumpThrow. All children participating in RunJumpThrow are eligible for one of 1,000 free USATF memberships given each year by USATF and The Hershey Company.
 
Through RunJumpThrow, kids participate in fun, hands-on learning events designed to build basic running, jumping and throwing skills. The RunJumpThrow toolkit for educators includes a turnkey, six-week curriculum and instructional DVD demonstrating as many as 20 physical activities. RunJumpThrow may also be conducted in schools as a single-day event.
 
Beginning this month, DPR will host monthly RunJumpThrow events throughout the city, encouraging community youth to participate. The culmination of the weekly RJT events will be a season-capping youth track meet for kids age 7-14. Interested families are encouraged to call (202) 671-0314 for details about the DPR program.
 
For more information on RunJumpThrow, visit www.usatf.org/runjumpthrow. For more information on the District of Columbia Department of Parks and Recreation, visit sports.healthfitness@dc.gov
 
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the country’s #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States. For more information on USATF, contact www.usatf.org.
 
About the DC Department of Parks and Recreation
The mission of the Department of Parks and Recreation is to enhance the quality of life and wellness of DC residents and visitors by providing equal access to affordable and quality recreational services, by organizing programs, activities and events, and by building and maintaining safe and beautiful open spaces and recreational amenities. For more information, visit www.dpr.dc.gov