Take action for health!

SOURCE:
April 3, 2026
John Welsh
Pioneer Press, St. Paul, MN

Citing a 1959 law, the Minnesota Department of Education has reversed itself and says school districts now must provide physical-education classes every year for student in kindergarten through eighth grad and at least once in the high school years. 

SOURCE:
March 16, 2026
Star Tribune, Variety
Minneapolis, MN

Most parents would never dream of putting a child in a car without a seat belt.  They would never allow a child to ride a bike without a helmet or cook on a stove unattended.  And they have good reason: Accidents are the leading cause of death in young people.  But how do you protect your child from heart disease, cancer, strokes, diabetes and high blood  pressure – ailments that typically don't strike until well into middle age?

SOURCE:
March 16, 2026
Pioneer Press, St. Paul, MN

A physical challenge is nearly as important as an academic challenge to a growing child.  It's pretty alarming that 61 percent of children age 9 to 13 took part in no organized physical activity outside of school, according to a survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

SOURCE:
Norman Draper, Staff Writer
March 15, 2026
Star Tribune, Minneapolis, MN

Lots of these changes are being proposed or have already been approved for next year.  The rationale is simple: Schools are under pressure to pump money into their main courses, improve their students' test scores, and free up kids to take other subjects such as music, art and foreign languages.  With money and time at a premium, something's got to give.

SOURCE:
March 12, 2026
Star Tribune, Minneapolis, MN

We eat more calories than we burn off, so we collectively get fatter over time.

SOURCE:
Mark Sherman, Associated Press
March 10, 2026
Star Tribune, Minneapolis, MN

A poor diet and physical inactivity caused 400,000 deaths in 2000, a 33 percent jump over 1990, said a study released Tuesday by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Tobacco-related deaths in the same period climbed by less than 9 percent and the gap between the two narrowed substantially. 

SOURCE:
Lisa Michals, News Tribune Staff Writer
March 4,2026
Duluth News Tribune

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A bill being considered by Minnesota lawmakers, however, would require them to find a way. Sponsored by Sen. David Tomassoni, DFL-Chisholm, the bill would require students to take health and phy ed classes to graduate.

SOURCE:
March 4, 2026
Star Tribune, Minneapolis, MN

Americans, recent research says, are too fat. All those bulging backsides and widening waistlines do not only plague adults; the obesity epidemic affects children as well. That must change. Legislators should approve a bill that would resurrect a requirement that had been in Minnesota law since 1923. A Senate subcommittee will hear testimony on the measure this afternoon on the measure and supporters will rally at the Capitol.

SOURCE:
Cindy Stewart
February 17, 2026
Kittson County Enterprise

…Along with everything else, physical education has changed over the years. Children in these classes don't spend their time playing kick ball, day after day. Instead, they visit the local bowling alley, the local curling club, participate in a walking program, learn dance moves and techniques and lift weights.

SOURCE:
Brad Swenson, Staff Writer
December 18, 2025
The Pioneer, Bemidji, MN

Sally Wiltse, a Bemidji State University assistant professor of physical education and health, worries that the rush for accountability in core subjects will force non-required courses such as phy ed and health off curriculum slates.

SOURCE:
Celeste Beam, Staff Reporter
December 3, 2025
Echo Press, Alexandria, MN

At the November District 206 School Board meeting, board members approved the grade 9 through 12 course requirements for graduation, which will begin in the 2004-05 school year.

SOURCE:
'Our View'
Saturday, November 15, 2025
Duluth Tribune, Duluth, MN

There's still hope in Duluth. The school district continues to require students to take health and physical education classes before they can graduate. But with lean budget times upon us, the School Board and administrators may have to pick and choose which offerings to require and which to offer only as electives.

SOURCE:
Bob Fenske, Free Press Staff Writer
November 4, 2025
The Free Press, Mankato, MN

To sum it up then, kids want P.E., even if the state no longer mandates it. Yep, physical education is no longer a requirement, a fact that dumfounds a number of educators, not to mention kids.

SOURCE:
Kelly Custer, Pioneer Staff Writer
Monday, October 20, 2025
The Pioneer, Bemidji, MN

Since 1923, health and physical education has been mandated by the state of Minnesota.

With the advent of Minnesota's new academic standards this May, health and physical education, along with vocational and technical education are no longer required by the state for kindergarten through eighth grade students.

SOURCE:
Brian Bakst, Associated Press
Published September 2, 2025
Star Tribune

The 2001 Minnesota Student Survey -- given to 133,632 students in sixth, ninth and 12th grades -- documented a dropoff in the frequency of exercise as children got older. For example, 23 percent of sixth-grade boys said they were involved in at least 20 minutes of activities a day that made them sweat or breathe hard, that fell to 19 percent in ninth grade and 13 percent for male students in their senior year.