Children and families from Kent State University’s Child Development Center laced up their shoes on Oct. 9 and Oct. 10 for the center’s Annual Walk-a-thon fundraiser, a two-day event filled with yard games, popsicles and music in support of outdoor learning.
The Walk-a-thon, which began as a small off-campus stroll years ago, now brings the center’s community together in the heart of campus to raise funds for the Outdoor Learning Laboratory, an expansive outdoor classroom where children explore nature through play, gardening, building and movement.
This year’s donations will help purchase new, long-lasting tricycles for the lab’s bike paths and covered bridges.
Adonia Porto, assistant director of the Child Development Center and organizer of the event, said the new tricycles will help maintain one of the lab’s most beloved features.
“The heavy-duty tricycles we purchase are costly, as they last at least 10 years, if not longer,” Porto said. “We believe riding trikes is an important part of childhood, and we want to always offer this experience to young children every day. We have a trike path on our Outdoor Learning Lab that goes through and across two covered bridges.”
The Outdoor Learning Laboratory, which opened in Sept. 2013, features an amphitheater, bike paths, wildflower patches, a garden, a mud kitchen, a bottle house, climbing structures, sandy spots, water features and an open field.
The space encourages children to “do things that kids do,” whether walking barefoot, gardening or building with natural materials. The funds raised through the Walk-a-thon help to maintain and enhance these opportunities for exploration and play.
This year’s event also marked a shift in visibility for the center, bringing the annual fundraiser into a more central and public space on campus.
“In previous years, we would walk down the bike and hike trail towards the stadium for our school’s Walk-a-thon, so we weren’t visible to others,” Porto said. “Our goal has been to have a greater presence on campus with the Kent State community, and I would say we achieved that this year with more parent volunteers and a dance party on the green in front of the student center.”
Beyond fundraising, the Walk-a-thon helps children understand the power of community and collaboration through real-world experiences with parents, teachers and Kent State students.
“The Walk-a-thon teaches children about community and especially how the KSU students are a part of our campus community,” Porto said. “The kindergarten children held signs to help encourage fundraising, recognizing that our favorite trikes cost a lot of money. We sold tie-dyed scrunchies that we made at the Child Development Center to KSU students walking across campus.”
Porto said the turnout and enthusiasm made this year’s event one of the most memorable yet.
“Many children and families expressed that they enjoyed the Child Development Center’s ‘Party on the Green,’ and we hope to repeat this experience in years to come,” she said.
Alexis Hood is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].