Healthier Haskell Program

The Healthier Haskell program is a university health and wellness program designed to promote healthier eating habits and physical activity in the local and university communities. The program was designed and implemented by the Haskell Indian Nations University, as part of an effort to promote health and prevent obesity in the American Indian population. The focal point of the program is a 10-month program to “walk around the world,” a total of 24,901 miles. This challenge is tackled by students, faculty, and community members. Participants in the program participate in weekly walking and running activities to log miles in addition to monthly program events. Since its inception, the program has expanded to include monthly and daily activities and seminars on fitness, nutrition and wellness, weightlifting, tennis, yoga, swimming and tae kwon do. In addition, as part of the program, soda and other unhealthy food choices were removed from the food line and replaces with healthier options.

The aim of the Healthier Haskell program is to improve health and prevent obesity in the American Indian population by encouraging physical activity and healthy eating.

Within six months of the program’s launch, nearly every student on campus had signed up to participate. As of April 2008, participants in the program had logged 105,176 miles.