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The American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) has roots dating back to the Golden Era of physical training. Little of that wisdom dominates in the AAHPERD today, but 26,000 members could do much good for our nation if a leader within them could reshape their efforts to include the vision of pioneers like W. G. Anderson, Dudley Sargent, Herman Koehler, and the countless others we have lonf forgotten. President-elect Dr. Jerry Landwer is ideally suited to point us toward a careful consideration of the past. His brief tour of duty as president offers a window of opportunity of the AAHPERD has the courage and wisdom to reshape HPERD for the future.

Over the last few years, regular readers of the IHPRA site have followed some interesting trends in American physical culture. Given the size of the site, we thought it might be useful to provide some key links that highlight some of the changes, challenges and opportunities that are appearing on the horizon.

Several decades ago, schools began to discredit an emphasis on physical fitness and emphasize a games and sports programs called "physical activities." This ignorance of physical fitness has been recently challenged as experts continue linking physical fitness to academic performance. As the public began to notice that physical education classes looked no different than recess, programs began to change. Online physical education options emerged, and have continued to gain ground. If there is little education to be gained in a physical education class, it followed that students will do just as well exercising on their own. NASPE addressed the trend by arguing that physical education and physical activity are different.
Current AAHPERD Dr. Jerry Landwer's vision for the future is linked directly to the Kraus Weber era, but he notes that we failed to do the right thing over forty years ago.

Throughout Iowa, innovative physical educators and administrators are developing quality programs that balance physical activities with functional physical fitness skills. The IHPRA salutes those physical educators determined to reshape their programs for the future.