Between 25 and 30 student organizations and community groups will be on West Chester University’s Academic Quad on Wednesday, Apr. 23, for the University’s annual Exercise is Medicine Day event. Free exercise classes, health checks, giveaways, snacks, and activities will take place from 11:00 AM-1:00 PM.

Participants who are coming from South Campus can get their daily steps in by joining a fitness walk from there to the Quad. It sets off at 10:40 AM.

The vision of Exercise is Medicine (EIM), a global health initiative managed by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), is to make physical activity assessment and promotion a standard in clinical care, connecting health care with evidence-based physical activity resources for people everywhere and of all abilities.

Exercise is Medicine On Campus (EIM-OC) calls upon universities and colleges to promote physical activity as a vital sign of health. EIM-OC encourages faculty, staff, and students to work together toward improving the health and well-being of the campus community by:

• Making movement a part of the daily campus culture;
• Assessing physical activity at every student health visit;
• Providing students with the tools necessary to strengthen healthy physical activity habits that can last a lifetime; and
• Connecting university health care providers with university health fitness specialists to provide a referral system for exercise prescription.

Dr. Melissa Reed, the Professor of Kinesiology who leads WCU’s EIM effort, notes that “WCU is an EIM On Campus registered school and has been an EIM Gold Campus [designations are gold, silver, and bronze] since 2019. We were first recognized as an EIM campus in 2018.” She is an ACSM Exercise is Medicine Ambassador.

Among the components of this year’s Exercise is Medicine Day include four 25-minute exercise sessions led by students; lawn games; WCU’s Bike Lending Library; a collaboration with the WCU Student Recreation Center; a wellness passport that guests can check off at various tables/booths to win free gift cards and prizes; the “Be Well Hut” from the Office of Wellness Promotion; plus activities, speakers, and information sessions. Many of the departments within WCU’s College of Health Sciences are involved. The program is organized with support from the College of Health Sciences Dean’s Office.

Reed is credentialed as a Certified Clinical Exercise Physiologist and has earned a Level III Exercise is Medicine Credential, both through ACSM. She is also a Centers for Disease Control Certified Lifestyle Coach (DPP Program).

Learn more at WCU. Enrolling more than 17,000 students, West Chester University is the largest institution in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Founded in 1871, the University is a comprehensive public institution, offering a diverse range of more than 200 undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs in more than 50 fields of study. In addition to the main campus in West Chester, the University offers programs through its graduate center, the Philadelphia site, and online. The University comprises six colleges and two schools: University College, Colleges of Arts and Humanities, Business and Public Management, Education and Social Work, Health Sciences, and the Sciences and Mathematics, the Wells School of Music, and the Graduate School.