Bike to School Day Call For Volunteers

[Tim Kelley]

Hi Everyone

We’re looking for volunteers for Bike to School Day, which is coming up next week on Wednesday, May 9th. Instead of doing a large event at one school we are hoping to do something much smaller at all the schools. Our plan is to have volunteer “greeters” at each school’s bike racks to welcome students who ride with bike pins and fun “I Biked” stickers. We’d need help at some point between 8am and 9am (but are flexible depending on each schools start time.)

We can get you more details next week, but we were hoping to get on people’s calendars ahead of time. Respond on this thread or email info@bikearlington.com if you can make it

Thanks!

[rcannon100]

Do you have permission from the schools to be doing this on school grounds?
Middle Schools generally start at 7:50. High School starts at 8:20. Elementary generally starts at 8:50.

[Tim Kelley]

Yes, we are working directly with APS on this...

[JustinW]

At the elementary school near my house (Claremont Immersion) the kids are (or at least were) prohibited from biking to school. Not good.

[DSalovesh]

In DC, a Bike to School day event is planned for Lincoln Park from 7:30 - 8:30. The parent organization behind it spans 11 schools, so it has potential to be a big gathering, and there are bike trains planned from there to the schools at 7:45, 8:00, and 8:15.

We've got confirmations from the director of NHTSA, the director of the National Safe Routes to School program, the president of Safe Kids Worldwide, and DDOT's SRTS coordinator, as well as invitations out to DDOT director Bellamy and Mayor Gray. I'm working on getting some bikeshop swag, but all riders will get medallions or stickers.

We need two things:

* Lots of kids to bike to school that day, especially if they can pass through the Lincoln Park pit stop (help spread the word!), and

* Some bike train leaders who can help get the kids from Lincoln Park to schools safely.

Shortly after students arrive at schools, members of Congress and leaders of bicycle advocacy organizations will hold a press conference to announce new survey data about Americans’ attitudes towards federal funding for biking and walking. The press conference will take place at 9:30 AM at 2nd and C St NE. Participant numbers from Bike to School day will be included in the remarks, so make a plan to get those numbers to Mary Lauran Hall with America Bikes. (@MaryLauran on twitter, mlhall@americabikes.org) - and get to the press conference yourself if you can!

[consularrider]

Wish I could volunteer, but I don't get back to town until Thursday.

[rcannon100]

Yes, we are working directly with APS on this...

Um. Okay. The principals are the ones charged with management of their campuses. If the principals are not in on board with this, then the visiting volunteers are potentially trespassers - and most schools have police stationed there. Are the principals on board? I would not want to be standing on campus outside of Yorktown handing mystery things to students unless the principal knew I was there and what I was doing.

[Tim Kelley]

Um. Okay. The principals are the ones charged with management of their campuses. If the principals are not in on board with this, then the visiting volunteers are potentially trespassers - and most schools have police stationed there. Are the principals on board? I would not want to be standing on campus outside of Yorktown handing mystery things to students unless the principal knew I was there and what I was doing.

Yes, we are working with the school administration at the County level. Think you can help out?