Health incentive earned by Strayer teachers

Mary Fitzgerald

Marcie Albertson and Kadishe Stoudt

Mary Fitzgerald gives a massage to a Strayer teacher, at left, and stands with fellow massage therapist

Marcie Albertson and Kadishe Stoudt, an English teacher and Strayer's representative on the district's Wellness Committee.

By Gary Weckselblatt

Thirty-eight teachers at Strayer Middle School earned massages Wednesday for taking part in Biometric Screenings given to district employees in March. The massages and screening are based on goals and incentives from the Bucks and Montgomery Health and Wellness Consortium, which QCSD is part of.

The 15-minute chair massages were given during a teachers' lunch break or prep time.

"The screenings are for cholesterol, body composition, blood glucose and blood pressure," said Kadishe Stoudt, an English teacher and Strayer's representative on the district's Wellness Committee. "Health screenings give you valuable information about your current health status and risk for certain diseases. Armed with this information, you can make healthy lifestyle changes starting now, so you can avoid serious health problems in the future."

Strayer qualified for the massages by having 40 percent of its employees take part in the Biometric Screenings.

"This is a wonderful opportunity to take control of your health and get to know your numbers," said Anita Kaseman, QCSD's benefits manager.

"Since ‘Mind Your Stress' was the district's Wellness theme for this year, it only makes sense to offer a chair massage as an incentive prize for participation in the biometric screening," said Lynne Morgan, QCSD's Wellness Coordinator and Instructional Coach.

Kaseman and Morgan have worked as a team on behalf of district employees by planning and encouraging healthy lifestyles. Their efforts have been highlighted in Community Health magazine.

Stoudt said she had never received a massage until last year's event. She said many teachers remain shy about getting one. However, "everyone who had one a year ago came back this year, 100 percent," she said.

The massages were given by Get In Touch Massage Therapy of Coopersburg.

Gary Weckselblatt, QCSD Director of Communications, writes about the people and the programs that impact the Quakertown Community School District. He can be reached at 215-529-2028 or [email protected].

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