Adopting Healthy Habits at Jefferson

Jefferson Community College (JCC) is a participant of Cornell Cooperative’s Adopting Healthy Habits initiative and encourages faculty, staff, students and visitors to increase their daily activity and park their cars farther away from buildings. During fall semester, signs with the message “Park Farther, Walk More,” were mounted to the outside, and inside, of buildings.

Jefferson is the only community college in the nation to receive the 2018 Active Minds Healthy Campus Award recognizing U.S. colleges and universities that demonstrate excellence in prioritizing and promoting the health and well-being of their students.

Parking farther away is just one of many small behavior changes people can make to become more active. Other recommendations include taking the stairs instead of elevators or escalators, walking or biking shorter distances instead of driving, and taking brief walks or stretch breaks throughout the day to break up long periods of sitting. Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County (CCE) and the Adopting Healthy Habits (AHH) Community Coalition are urging local businesses to help remind people to walk more by posting signs encouraging them to park farther away and walk those extra steps to good health.

The Adopting Healthy Habits Community Coalition works to make the North Country a healthier place to live, work and play. They help local groups, community leaders, and organizations create policies, practices and environments to make healthy lifestyles the easy choice. For more information on the Park Farther signs or any of the other healthy initiatives through the AHH Community Coalition, call 315-788-8450.