Maine Nutrition & Physical Activity Organizations

The Center For Kids First in Sports, Health, and Education, founded by Regis Tremblay and Jerry Stitt, is a national effort to prepare all children for active, healthy, and meaningful lives. By placing the needs of children FIRST, we can better prepare them to become self-reliant, confident, and healthy.

It is one of the few grassroots organizations using comprehensive school-based intervention strategies to combat obesity and chronic disease.

Instead of top-down unfunded mandates, we use a grassroots approach to empower the school community. We believe we can make a difference by getting and keeping kids active, and helping them make healthy food choices. Kids FIRST programs also involve educating parents, teachers, and coaches so that we can effectively change the culture.

LET'S GO! is a community-based initiative to promote healthy lifestyle choices for children, youth and families in 12 Greater Portland communities. Our goal is to increase physical activity and healthy eating of children and youth ages 0 – 18. Let's Go!'s Founding Partners are Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Maine, Hannaford Bros. Co., MaineHealth, Maine Medical Center, TD Banknorth, Unum and United Way of Greater Portland, a unique partnership of Maine's leading health, business and community-based organizations.

Governor's Council on Physical Fitness, Sports, Health and Wellness
The purpose of the Governor's Council is to advise the Governor of means to foster a healthy citizenry, as well as offer viable solutions to the health challenges that face the State by promoting the benefits of physical activity.

Maine Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation & Dance (MAHPERD)
MAHPERD is committed to Excellence in Health Education, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.

Maine Center for Disease Control Physical Activity & Nutrition Program (PAN)
The Maine Physical Activity and Nutrition Plan 2005-2010 is intended for health professionals, business leaders, the food industry, policymakers, educators, the media, and citizens to use as a guiding document to improve the health and well-being of Maine people. The plan outlines key objectives and strategies for youth and adults with eight focus areas.

Maine Center for Public Health

Maine Coordinated School Health Programs (CSHP)
Maine CSHP is a joint collaborative between the Maine Department of Education and the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. CSHP is an effective system designed to connect health with education. Theis coordinated approach to school health inproves students' health and their capacity to learn through the support of families, communities and schools working together through prevention and intervention.

Maine Dairy & Nutrition Council
The Maine Dairy & Nutrition Council has been providing accurate, science-based nutrition information for over 50 years. They have a variety of tools and resources available for educators and child nutrition programs to assist with implementation of their Local Wellness Policy.

Maine Department of Education Child Nutrition Services
This office is responsible for the After School Snack Program, Food Distribution, Special Milk Program, National Breakfast Program, National School Lunch Program, and Summer Food Service Program. They provide technical assistance, conducts reviews and provides training.

Maine Nutrition Council (MNC)
The MNC is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization that promotes the mission of its founders – to contribute to the health and well-being of Maine citizens through education, research and advocacy. Its members include professionals who work in a variety of nutrition related careers, as well as other people who simply are interested in food and health. Education continues to be a primary focus of the council. MNC offers three educational events each year for members and sponsors an annual nutrition conference. Anyone interested in nutrition can become a member for only $15 a year.

Maine Nutrition Network (MNN)
MNN is a collaboration of public and private partners that coordinate nutrition activities to create an environment that supports the health of Maine people. Find a wide variety of nutrition and physical activity resources and programs on our website.

Maine School Food Service Association (MSFSA)
The official website for the Maine School Foodservice Association.

Teens to Trails is a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing the opportunities for Maine teens to get into the out-of-doors and form their own personal connection with nature. Teens To Trails' goal is to give Maine teens hope and dreams by engaging them in the outdoors. Currently they are focused on building and supporting outing clubs at all high schools across the State. They offer grants to new clubs, an Outing Club Startup Guide, first aid kits, a gear pool consisting of backpacks, tents, snowshoes, and other specialized equipment made available for use by outing clubs at no charge, a series of "Teens Care" service learning initiatives, college/high school mentoring, and several other programs.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension (UMCE)
For more than 90 years, the University of Maine has had the responsibility to reach out to Maine citizens and provide accessible education, leadership and service to the state. UMCE has a variety of resources available for Maine Schools, particulary in the area of nutrition. Contact your local county office to learn more.

Winterkids
WinterKids is a nonprofit organization committed to helping children develop lifelong habits of health, education, and physical fitness through outdoor, winter activity. They have some fun resources to encourage physical activity in Maine schools!