Things are Bigger in Texas

Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services is home to the Steps to a Healthier Houston Harris County Consortium CATCH project, the largest CATCH implementation in one locale to date. The Steps Consortium is a public-private partnership which addresses the issues of obesity prevention in Harris County, Texas.   Thus far, more than 300 elementary schools have been fully trained in CATCH. This project is not only big, but has achieved success on many fronts—districts working to institutionalize CATCH, schools changing their environment, and children with the help of dedicated, CATCH trained staff improving their diets and increasing their physical activity.  

The great strides made through the project have been recognized on both state and national levels. In January, the CATCH project received the Texas Department of State Health Services 2006 Nutrition and Physical Activity Best Practice Award. This spring, they were recognized by National Association of City and County Health Officials (NACCHO) as a "Promising Practice" for 2007. The American Public Health Association has also selected two abstracts from project staff to present in the poster session at their 2007 national meeting in Washington , DC this November. One poster will focus on baseline data from the project, while the other is built around the school health liaison model used for the training and implementation of CATCH with the schools. Until then, the project staff will continue their busy schedule training CATCH teams from nearly 100 additional schools, working with the schools and the 20 school districts, and working with the University of Texas School of Public Health to evaluate the impact and outcomes of the project. The project is funded by a grant from Houston Endowment, Inc. 

Back to Archives

Contact us for more information on CATCH!