- The Walking School Bus happens every third Wednesday of the month throughout the school year, bringing dads and their kids together to promote active fathers.
- Children with active father figures in their lives are twice as likely to go to college and find stable employment, according to Children's Bureau.
- Watch now to hear how a local dad describes the importance of quality time with his nine-year-old daughter.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
I'm Alberto Camargo, your Collegetown neighborhood reporter, and I brought my walking shoes today because I spent the morning walking with students and dads from Florida State University Schools, as part of the Walking School Bus.
The morning started at Southwood Town Center, where students punched their "frequent walker card" and began the 25-minute trip from Southwood Town Center to FSUS with dad alongside them.
Meet Jeremy and nine-year-old Alexis Forbes.
"F-O-R-B-E-S"
Wednesday was their first time participating in the walk. When Jeremy is not at work...
"I turn apartments, houses, various construction projects. If I'm not doing that I'm in the kitchen cooking meals for folks.
He's spending as much time as possible with Alexis.
"I don't think there's like enough time I can spend with her. But the time I do spend we, time kind of just flies really."
Wednesday they spent the morning walking hand-in-hand. For a moment at least, before Alexis rushed forward to catch up to her buddies. Despite what this looks like, Alexis says she enjoys spending time with dad and several other positive fatherly figures in her life.
"She's particularly blessed because she's being raised by a father, two uncles and a grandfather."
Children's Bureau has found that children with a close relationship to their father are twice as likely to go to college or find stable employment after high school, and are significantly LESS likely to have a teen birth or end up in jail.
"Are you a Buffalo Bills fan? OK, I like it, that'll work."
Douglass Cooke is the president of the FSUS Parent Teacher Student Association and an organizer of the Walking School Bus. He says that on top of research showing the positive impacts of an active father, he also aims to change a common stereotype.
"Dads are active and we're willing to participate and help out and get our kids to school and make sure they have a great day."
As of now, the Walking School Bus is only held at FSUS, but Douglass says he hopes that changes sooner rather than later.
"I think it would be awesome if we could do this, maybe we could it expand it next year to do every school within Leon County to do it on the same day."
The Walking School Bus occurs every third Wednesday of the month throughout the school year. In Southeast Tallahassee, I'm your neighborhood reporter Alberto Camargo, ABC27.
