The source is the Arkansas High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Data is reported every two years and ONLY reflects grades 9-12. The outcome measure describes the percentage of Arkansas youth who are doing any kind of physical activity that increased their heart rate and made them breathe hard some of the time, during the 7 days before the survey.

When asked how Arkansas adults are doing relative to the trendline data for the indicator, the stakeholders stated the following:

• Things took a downturn in 2017
• Things are getting better, heading in the right direction
• However, the 2021 data is only reaching the level of 2011 but has not yet caught back up to 2013 or 2015 (which were both the highest data points on the trendline)

Stakeholders identified the following positive factors promoting Arkansas youth to engage in 60 minutes of physical activity five days a week.

• Activity from summer programming might have an impact on the data, depending on the point in time of data collection
• Change in policy within the AR School System: Act 641 of 2019 requires ES students have 40 minutes of physical activity daily
• Families are starting to get back out of the house as COVID-19 vaccination rates are going up and COVID-19 rates are going down
• Youth involved in sports or athletics participate in regular physical activity

Stakeholders identified the following negative factors preventing Arkansas youth from engaging in 60 minutes of physical activity five days a week.

• Body image might dissuade 
• Cultural perceptions about who is able to exercise
  • Exercise advertisements present people who are more "normal"
  • Communities of color may not see a type of physical activity (e.g., hiking) as exercise that is available to them
• Family dynamics - if the parents or caretakers don't have the habit or culture of exercising, the behavior might get picked in the home. There might also be less support from parents or caretakers for youth who do want to exercise
• Organized sports come with a price tag to participate that might be prohibitive for some families
• Policy for HS physical activity is one semester of physical activity over the course of four years 
• Students may have to choose other competing priorities over engaging physical activity 
• Students might be drawn to more intellectually focused extracurricular pursuits
• Students who are not participating in a competitive sport (basketball, football, volleyball) might miss out on opportunities to engage in physical activity
• Screen time, including phones, computers, tablets, and/or TVs
• Varying levels of access to places to engage in physical activity, including school grounds, parks, etc.
  • Concerns over safety at public spaces to engage safely in physical activity

Stakeholders identified the following potential partners to strengthen the positive factors or address the negative factors influencing the percentage of youth who engage in 60 minutes of physical activity 5 days a week:

• 4-H Youth development programs related to physical activity
• ACH Community Engagement Team
• After School Programs-Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs- provide facility for engagement 
• Arkansas Chapter of AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics)
• ArCOP and other health organizations
• ADH Hometown Health Leaders
• Arkansas Department of Education, Athletic Clubs within school system
• Churches with family life centers
• Parents- provide transportation to physical activity programs
• Policy Makers (Local and State)- similar requirements for activity time during school day
• Arkansas Community Health Workers Association- help connect stakeholders to communities that are underserved and address barriers as advocates
• Summer Camp Programs- provide facility and infrastructure for physical activity programs
• School Representatives (teachers, staff, admin, and volunteers)
• Pediatricians -can help encourage parents to support the physical activity of their youth and educate on the importance of exercise
• School district administrators for joint use agreements for facilities
• Teenagers
• Parks and Recreation Centers- provide facility and infrastructure for physical activity programs

Stakeholders identified the following solutions to strengthen the positive factors or address the negative factors influencing the percentage of youth who engage in 60 minutes of physical activity 5 days a week:

• Blue and You Foundation grants to schools for athletic activities that are not school athletic team associated or AAA sanctioned (activity groups for fun)
• Community sponsor for a team to participate in organized sports (all kids paid for by one entity regardless of an individual child’s ability to pay) 
• Business sponsor scholarships to fitness locations
• Faith-based exercise programs (may need to promote or identify funding sources specifically for this need)
• Family-based exercise programs; that encourage families or neighbors to move together (may need to promote or identify funding sources specifically for this need)
• Safe routes to schools (walking/biking)
• Have student mentors of all shapes and colors in community and school programs
• Have town or state celebrities come and visit a place that promote physical activity and print it in the local paper
• More community nights sponsored by local businesses where families come together and do physical activity and have drawings or tshirts
• Non-traditional/unconventional and non-competitive physical activity programs to encourage movement through fun activities  such as dancing, badminton, racquetball, gardening, hiking, trampolining, etc.
• Peer modeling/social support exercise programs to encourage movement among teens who struggle with body image or cultural barriers; using motivational coaches
• Provide access to gym after school hours with supervision for safety (joint use agreements)
• Schools have an organized club that focuses on being active as a group and varies the activities
• State and local policy (increase time for physical activity), system (make it the norm for all inclusive activity) and environmental (increase access such as parks, fields to play) changes
• Tailor marketing that promotes the availability and accessibility of state parks to all high school aged-youth and their families
• Virtual exercise programs, where youth/families can exercise from their homes with a virtual coach or group (while considering barriers for rural residents with limited access to the internet) 
• Work with local retailers to include real students modeling their clothes in their ads

Stakeholders prioritized the following strategies because they ranked highest across four critera: Impact, Feasibility, Specificity, and Value.

• Enact state and local policies that increase time for physical activity for high school youth which focuses on systems change (i.e., making it a norm that activities are inclusive for all youth regardless of weight or mobility) and environmental change(increase access such as parks, fields to play

• Engage schools to provide access to facilities after school hours and to support organized clubs that focus on being active as a group and varies the activities (joint use agreements)

• Promote non-traditional/unconventional and non-competitive physical activity programs to encourage movement through fun activities such as dancing, badminton, racquetball, gardening, hiking, trampolining, etc.

Strategy: Enact state and local policies that increase time for physical activity for high school youth which focuses on systems change (i.e., making it a norm that activities are inclusive for all youth regardless of weight or mobility) and environmental change(increase access such as parks, fields to play

Strategy: Engage schools to provide access to facilities after school hours and to support organized clubs that focus on being active as a group and varies the activities (joint use agreements)

Strategy: Promote non-traditional/unconventional and non-competitive physical activity programs to encourage movement through fun activities such as dancing, badminton, racquetball, gardening, hiking, trampolining, etc.