 | |
| Owner | National Park Service |
|---|---|
| Created by | Barack Obama |
| Registration | None |
| Launched | September 1, 2015 |
Every Kid in a Park is a program run by the United States National Park Service in which fourth graders in the country receive free admission to National Parks. The program was created by Barack Obama in 2015 and has been renewed annually every year since.
On February 19, 2015, President Obama announced the initiative. [1] The initiative was launched in the fall of 2015 to coincide with the one hundredth anniversary of the National Park Service. [2] [3] [4] The National Park Service gives all United States students in the fourth grade and their families an annual pass for free admission. [2] Areas of admission include national parks, forests, monuments, and wildlife refuges. [2] [5] Around the time of the announcement of the initiative, annual passes to national parks generally cost $80. [6]
Cost coverage for the free passes will come from the National Park Service's $20-million budget for youth engagement programs. [2] [7] [8] The National Park Foundation and National Park Service will provide transportation grants and educational materials to schools, with a focus on schools that have greater need. [2] [3] [7] Such transportation grants are part of the National Park Foundation's "Ticket to Ride" program. [3] [4] Resources will also be provided to facilitate the location of nearby parks and supporting youth programs. [3] [7]
Criticism of the initiative includes concern over a possible increase in National Parks' reliance on Congress. [7] Another concern of the initiative is of its cost, but one source from The Washington Post projects that only $2.3 million in revenue will be lost. [9]
Fourth-graders were specifically chosen for "logistical, educational and instructional reasons", according to a White House official. [10] The National Park Service as well as other public agencies already have fourth grade programs in place. [10] Furthermore, many states within the United States teach state history during fourth grade, so National Park programs are relevant to the grade. [10] Other reasons include ease in coordination of trips by a student's one teacher (rather than multiple teachers, as present in higher grades) and the idea of youth building early connections with nature. [10]
The Every Kid in a Park website everykidinapark.gov was designed and developed by 18F. [11]
The Every Kid in a Park website everykidinapark.org was designed and developed by Sub Rosa. [12]
The John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, signed in March 2019, included the Every Kid Outdoors Act, which authorized the program for 7 years.
Laura Lane Welch Bush is an American teacher, librarian, memoirist and author who was the first lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009. Bush previously served as the first lady of Texas from 1995 to 2000. She is the wife of former President George W. Bush, and the daughter-in-law of former president George H.W. Bush.
The Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) – formerly known as the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) – is a program administered by the United States Department of Health and Human Services that provides matching funds to states for health insurance to families with children. The program was designed to cover uninsured children in families with incomes that are modest but too high to qualify for Medicaid. The program was passed into law as part of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, and the statutory authority for CHIP is under title XXI of the Social Security Act.
The White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, formerly the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (OFBCI) is an office within the White House Office that is part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States.
The National Park Foundation (NPF) is the official charity of the National Park Service (NPS) and its national park sites. The NPF was chartered by Congress in 1967 with a charge to "further the conservation of natural, scenic, historic, scientific, educational, inspirational, or recreational resources for future generations of Americans." The NPF raises private funds for the benefit of, or in connection with, the activities and services of the National Park Service.
New Energy for America was a plan led by Barack Obama and Joe Biden beginning in 2008 to invest in renewable energy sources, reduce reliance on foreign oil, address global warming issues, and create jobs for Americans. The main objective for the New Energy for America plan was to implement clean energy sources in the United States in order to switch from nonrenewable resources to renewable resources. The plan led by the Obama Administration aimed to implement short-term solutions to provide immediate relief from pain at the pump, and mid- to- long term solutions to provide a New Energy for America plan. The goals of the clean energy plan hoped to: invest in renewable technologies that will boost domestic manufacturing and increase homegrown energy, invest in training for workers of the clean technologies, strengthen the middle class, and help the economy.
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Aneesh Paul Chopra is an American executive who served as the first Chief Technology Officer of the United States. He was appointed in 2009 by President Barack Obama and was at the White House through 2012. Chopra previously served as Virginia's Secretary of Technology under Governor Tim Kaine. Chopra was a candidate in 2013 for the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia. He is the author of Innovative State: How New Technologies Can Transform Government (2014) and co-founder and president of CareJourney. In 2015 he joined Albright Stonebridge Group as a senior advisor.
Let's Move! was a public health campaign in the United States led by First Lady Michelle Obama. The campaign aimed to reduce childhood obesity and encourage a healthy lifestyle in children.
The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 is a federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on December 13, 2010. The law is part of the reauthorization of funding for child nutrition. It funded child nutrition programs and free lunch programs in schools for 5 years. In addition, the law set new nutrition standards for schools, and allocated $4.5 billion for their implementation. The new nutrition standards were a centerpiece of First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! initiative to combat childhood obesity. In FY 2011, federal spending totaled $10.1 billion for the National School Lunch Program. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act allows USDA, for the first time in 30 years, opportunity to make real reforms to the school lunch and breakfast programs by improving the critical nutrition and hunger safety net for millions of children. Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act and Michelle Obama were a step in transforming the food pyramid recommendation, which has been around since the early 1990s, into what is now known as "MyPlate".
Todd Park is a Korean American entrepreneur and government executive. He served as Chief Technology Officer of the United States and technology advisor for U.S. President Barack Obama.
The Presidential Innovation Fellows program is a competitive fellowship program that pairs top innovators from the private sector, non-profits, and academia with top innovators in government to collaborate on solutions that aim to deliver significant results in months, not years. It was established in 2012 and has operated continuously since then. The program focuses on generating measurable results, using innovation techniques from private industry such as Lean Startup, Design Thinking, and Agile Development.
The following is a timeline of the presidency of Barack Obama, from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013. For his time as president-elect, see the presidential transition of Barack Obama; for a detailed account of his first months in office, see first 100 days of Barack Obama's presidency; for a complete itinerary of his travels, see list of presidential trips made by Barack Obama.
Sarah Margaret "Sally" Roffey Jewell is a British-American businessperson who served as the 51st United States secretary of the interior in the Obama administration from 2013 to 2017.
The following is a timeline of the presidency of Barack Obama, from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014. For his time as president-elect, see the presidential transition of Barack Obama; for a detailed account of his first months in office, see first 100 days of Barack Obama's presidency; for a complete itinerary of his travels, see list of presidential trips made by Barack Obama.
The following is a timeline of the presidency of Barack Obama, from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015. For his time as president-elect, see the presidential transition of Barack Obama; for a detailed account of his first months in office, see first 100 days of Barack Obama's presidency; for a complete itinerary of his travels, see list of presidential trips made by Barack Obama.
My Brother's Keeper Challenge is a public–private partnership of the United States federal government which promotes intervention by civic leaders in the lives of young men of color. The program was initiated in 2014 with sponsorship of the White House, the United States Department of Education, and the National Convening Council. The initiative obtained pledges by non-profit organizations of $200 million over five years. The initiative was intended to be a call to action for mayors, Native American tribal leaders, county executives, and other municipal leaders to address persistent opportunity gaps for young men of color and help them reach their potential.
The United States public policy agenda on issues affecting Native Americans under the Obama administration includes the signing of the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010, which allowed tribal courts to extend and expand sentences handed down to them in criminal cases, strengthening tribal autonomy. Obama also supported and enforced the Executive Order 13175, which requires the federal government to consult with tribal governments when deliberating over policies and programs that would affect tribal communities. Under the Obama Administration was also the launching of Michelle Obama's program Let's Move In Indian Country, which aims to improve opportunities for physical activity, to increase access to healthy food in tribal communities, and to create collaborations between private and public sectors to build programs that will end childhood obesity in Native communities. Obama also supported tribal communities through certain provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which allocated $510 million for rehabilitation of Native American housing, and the settlement of the Keepseagle case, a lawsuit against the United States Department of Agriculture for discriminating against tribal communities by not allowing them equal access to the USDA Farm Loan Program. Most recently, Obama signed Executive Order 13592, which seeks to improve educational opportunities for American Indian and Alaska Natives. Obama has been praised by many tribal leaders, including those who claim he has done more for Native Americans than all of his predecessors combined.
Browns Canyon National Monument is a 21,586 acres (87 km2) national monument in Chaffee County, Colorado, that was designated as such by President Barack Obama under the Antiquities Act on February 19, 2015. The site will be centered along the Arkansas River between Buena Vista and Salida. Browns Canyon is the most popular destination for whitewater rafting in the country, and is also known for its fishing and hiking. The monument will provide habitat protection for bighorn sheep, peregrine falcons, elk, and golden eagles.
White House Astronomy Night is an event first organized by the White House in conjunction with the Office of Science and Technology Policy to motivate interest in astronomy and science education. The original White House Astronomy Night was held in 2009 on the South Lawn. In 2010 the White House and the Office of Science and Technology Policy organized a similar event with help from Hofstra University, this time held on the National Mall. Between 2010 and 2014 annual events took place at the National Mall with coordination between Hofstra University and federal agencies including: the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, NASA, and the National Science Foundation. In 2015 an event took place in June at the National Mall, and then back at the White House again on October 19.