Buy Groceries and Help America SCORES LA

Have you ever thought to yourself, "Man, I wish I could help America SCORES LA earn some money, while simultaneously saving money myself, simply by remembering a small plastic card or a phone number when I buy groceries"? If so, you're in luck!

If you shop at Ralphs, you can register your rewards card online and choose America SCORES LA as your community partner. Then every time you use your Ralphs Rewards Card, Ralphs will donate a percentage of what you spend back to us! It's a win-win! Follow these steps to sign up:

1. Register your card (you need your card number for this)
2. Check your email and confirm
3. Sign in
4. Click "Community Rewards"
5. Click "Edit Community Contribution Program Information"
6. Fill in the information it asks for
7. Search for "LA SCORES"
8. Save the information
9. Use your Rewards Card next time you go shop, and Ralphs will donate money to America SCORES LA!

Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids

Last month, in order to address the growing problems of childhood obesity and malnutrition in the US, Congress passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. This legislation aims to improve the nutritional value of food served in schools and provide more free meals to low-income students. Over the next few years, the government will allocate an extra six cents per meal served at school, and the USDA will be given authority to introduce new nutritional standards concerning what schools will be allowed to serve in lunches, a la carte lines, and vending machines.

The USDA has proposed a plan to get the ball rolling. Under this proposal, the following changes would be made:

• Minimum and maximum calories for meals
• More servings of fresh fruits and vegetables
  
• Reduced sodium levels
• At least 50% of grains are whole grain
• Less servings of starchy vegetables (potatoes, corn, etc.)
• No more food with trans fat

According to the CDC, 17% of children in the US are obese, a number that has tripled in the past 30 years. According to one study, 80% of obese children will be obese as adults. The rise in childhood obesity has seen with it an increase in health problems for these children such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes. Also, for the first time in history, scientists say, due to the high incidence of obesity, that parents may out-live their children.

While this bill will not instantly cure childhood obesity, it is a good first step. Many kids consume over half of their daily calories at school. This new bill is the first legislation passed in a long time to regulate the food schools serve to them.

Palms Premier League Begins for Middle School

This week marks the first day of the Palms Premier League at Palms Middle School. America SCORES LA and Team Prime Time, an after school program that brings sports, arts, and homework help to Title 1 middle schools in Los Angeles, teamed up to create this six-team, month-long tournament. Every Tuesday and Thursday for the next four weeks, each team gets to play two games. Refs from ASLA and TPT keep track of the score and player stats so that the teams will know the standings before every game. Teams are a mixture of boys and girls 6-8th grade.

The players were excited to take what they've learned in practice and put it to the test in a competitive league. Scroll down to see pictures of them in action!

Braddock's ASCAP Video

Kids at Braddock worked with song-writing duo Da Internz through our partnership with ASCAP to write and record an original song. Watch a video of their experience at the recording studio and listen to their song here.