The College of Charleston’s community fitness programs are beginning their first full year after a successful pilot in spring 2011. Starting on October 4, 2011, children and adults in peninsular Charleston are invited to the Arthur Christopher Community Center for free exercise sessions with a wellness coach. This urban campus/community partnership gives residents free exercise training sessions and gives College of Charleston health and human performance students hands-on experience.

Adults can participate in the C-PARCS (Charleston-Physically Active Residential Communities and Schools) program. Offered from October 4 through November 16 on Tuesdays from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. and Wednesdays from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. at the Arthur Christopher Community Center (265 Fishburn St.) C-PARCS is a community wellness program that was designed and implemented in peninsular Charleston to offer free physical activity programming to underserved populations. Nearly 30 Charleston residents participated in the spring 2011 pilot program.

Children ages three through 10 can participate in the FitCATZ program to engage in action-based learning activities in a fun and safe environment (a parent must be participating in the C-PARCS wellness program). FitCATZ is held on Tuesdays from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. Children in grades four through six can participate in the Running Buddies program, where they train for the 5K Reindeer Run Road Race on December 3 (parent participation in C-PARCS is not required for the Running Buddies Program). All children’s programs are free and the first 25 participants in the Running Buddies program will receive free running shoes and clothes.

“This program is really a win-win for everyone involved,” says Tim Scheett, one of the program’s coordinators and a professor in the Department of Health and Human Performance. “Students are getting a great capstone experience and we were helping to fill a need in the community. In fact, everyone involved believes in it so much that we’re all donating our time and resources because we have not yet secured funding to continue the program.”

A fundraiser for the C-PARCS program will be held in the Stern Center Garden on October 19, 2011 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. ROCK THIS PARTY is a flash mob and dance event and costs $5 to attend. Additional donations are also welcome.

Charleston’s PARCS program is based on one developed at Indiana University – Purdue University, Indianapolis. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends at least 150 minutes of physical activity on a weekly basis to improve health, and in the Charleston area, the obesity rates of adults reached an all-time high in 2008, with 50-54% of adults classified as obese.

For more information, contact Tim Scheett at 843.953.6538 or scheettt@cofc.edu.