Community Park-Based Programs for Health Promotion: The Fit2Lead Prospective Cohort Study (F2L)

Duke University

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Hypertension; Prehypertension; Overweight or Obesity; Low Physical Fitness; Wellness, Psychological; Anxiety

Treatments: Behavioral: Fit2Lead Group 1-2

Study type: Observational

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06596265

Pro00105669_2

Details and patient eligibility

About

The Fit2Lead prospective cohort study examines the effects of a park-based youth mental health and resilience afterschool program on youth participant mental health, resilience, physical fitness, and violence prevention outcomes. Duke will perform a secondary analysis of the data collected as part of the Fit2Lead prospective cohort study run by Miami-Dade County Parks and Recreation.

Full description

The Fit2Lead prospective cohort study examines the effects of a park-based youth mental health and resilience afterschool program on youth physical and mental health and resilience, communication, and problem-solving skills training for underserved youth aged 12 to 17 years through an interdisciplinary collaboration among Miami-Dade Department of Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces (MDPROS) Miami-Dade County (MDC) Juvenile Services Department, MDC Public Schools, MDC Police Department, University of Miami, Florida International University, and other community-based partners.

Fit2Lead consists of 2 phases initiated simultaneously in 2015. For youth aged 12 to 14 years, Fit2Lead is offered after school Monday through Friday from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm at 12 MDC parks for participants in under resourced neighborhoods and based on area-level youth crime and neighborhood poverty. Fit2Lead runs September through June at no charge, and provides daily academic support, sports and recreation, meditation, stress resilience, and life skills-focused workshops. Each park serves anywhere from 2 to 9 feeder schools within these neighborhoods (a target population of 34 000 youth residents aged 12-17 years), and transportation from schools to parks is provided at no cost within a 3-mile radius of a program park. Fit2Lead participants can also enroll in the MDPROS youth summer camp at no charge.

Phase II of Fit2Lead is for youth aged 15 to 17 years and entails a year-round paid internship and 3-hour weekly enrichment, resilience, and life skills workshops. Daily entry-level part-time interns receive $9 per hour (approximately 500 total paid hours per year; total salary approximately $4000 per participant, per year). Work assignments support MDPROS operations and recreation staff. Interns rotate every 8 weeks for exposure to different job opportunities, supervisors, and mentors. Phase 1 participants who reach age 15 years and are awaiting an internship placement can remain in phase 1 until a position opens or can be transferred to another internship program within the MDPROS.

Enrollment: 1,000 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 12 to 17 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• All participants enrolled in the Miami-Dade Fit2Lead study will be included in this secondary analysis
• Aged 12-17 years, residing in Miami-Dade County

Exclusion criteria

• Anyone not enrolled in the Miami-Dade Fit2Lead study will be excluded from this secondary analysis
• Aged <12 or >17 years, not residing in Miami-Dade County, cannot read and speak in English

Trial design

1,000 participants in 1 patient group

Fit2 Lead Cohort 1-2

Description:

Fit2Lead runs September through June at no charge, and provides daily academic support, sports and recreation, meditation, stress resilience, and life skills-focused workshops. Participants who reach age 15 years and are awaiting an internship placement can remain in phase 1 until a position opens or can be transferred to another internship program within the MDPROS.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Fit2Lead Group 1-2