Cartoon network tackles a children's issue by making activism and volunteering fun

Cartoon Network Tackles a Children’sIssue by Making Activism andVolunteering Fun VANESSA FOSTER

Cartoon Network leveraged its marketing and cre-ative capabilities, public access, and blue-ribbonpartners to launch the nationwide “Rescuing Re-cess” campaign, which mobilizes grassroots actionto preserve or reinstate playtime for elementaryschool children. The campaign is also a power-ful example of successful cause marketing. Car-toon Network partnered with child advocacy andpolicy-making organizations; encouraged childrenand adults to write letters to legislators advocat-ing for education policy change; made cash grantsto schools to purchase recess equipment; and initi-ated National Recess Week, with locally organizedrallies to raise awareness of the issue and encourageadults to volunteer as recess monitors. This article isprinted by permission of Cartoon Network. © 2008Cartoon Network.

Despite mounting evidence that kids need an outletto blow off steam, develop social interaction skills,and get necessary exercise, many U.S. elementaryschools have either eliminated or are consideringeliminating recess due to budgetary and academicpressures. Currently, only eight state-level SchoolBoards of Education have a policy that ensures dailyrecess. Along with many other organizations andindividuals, Cartoon Network believes this trend isnot in the best interests of children.

Cartoon Network (CartoonNetwork.com), cur-rently seen in more than 91 million U.S. homes and160 countries around the world, is Turner Broad-casting System, Inc.’s advertising-supported cableservice offering original, acquired, and classic an-imated entertainment. In 2006, Cartoon Network

channeled its influence with kids and families bychampioning a cause that matches the network’s funpersonality and programming mission. In conjunc-tion with a panel of leading children’s health andeducation advisors, the network launched “Rescu-ing Recess,” a multi-award-winning national move-ment that raises awareness about the importance ofrecess and provides resources to support and revi-talize recess in elementary schools across the UnitedStates.

In just two years, Cartoon Network has committedmore than $4 million in media resources and cash,and has engaged schoolchildren, parents, teachers,community volunteers, and local governments inthe effort to keep or reinstate recess for nearly fivemillion American children. The winning campaigndemonstrates the network’s commitment to kids andfamilies and, through partnership and communityservice, empowers kids to get actively involved ininfluencing the health and education issues that di-rectly affect them. In the process, the network lever-aged its brand to build new relationships with abroad range of stakeholders.

Why Rescue Recess?A growing body of evidence demonstrates that recessis much more than sanctioned play during the schoolday. It is a vital component of well-rounded child-hood development. Numerous studies show that re-cess is the fourth “R” among the traditional schoolfundamentals of reading, writing, and arithmetic—as essential as study time to childhood develop-ment. Experts across the country agree that recess

c© 2008 Cartoon Network . Al l r ights reserved. Repr inted by permission of Cartoon Network .Publ ished onl ine in Wi ley InterScience (www.interscience.wi ley .com)

Global Business and Organizat ional Excel lence • DOI : 10.1002/ joe .20190 • January/February 2008 7

is essential to children’s social, mental, and physicalwell-being:1

� Unstructured physical activity boosts social, men-tal, and physical development among all kids, es-pecially the hyperactive.

� Recess allows kids to practice life skills such ascooperation, respect for rules, sharing, and con-flict resolution.

� Teachers report improved focus and attentionand fewer disruptions and discipline problems inthe classroom when kids have recess.

� Parents say their kids are more active after schoolon days when they have recess.

“We know that many children enjoy recess as a wel-come break from the classroom, and parents appre-ciate the balance that it offers between schoolworkand play,” says Anna Weselak, immediate past-president of the National Parent Teacher Associa-tion (PTA) and one of the program’s first advisors.2

“Children who are physically active do better inthe classroom. The research tells us that even if itmeans a slight reduction in class time, providingmore time for physical activity can lead to increasedtest scores.”

In addition to enhancing academic performance, re-cess plays a critical role in children’s physical well-being.

In addition to enhancing academic performance, re-cess plays a critical role in children’s physical well-being. Childhood obesity with its attendant healthissues is a national epidemic. According to the Cen-ters for Disease Control and Prevention, the num-ber of overweight American kids has tripled since1980. Research has also projected that nearly halfof all children in North America will be overweightby the end of this decade, and 15 percent will beobese.3 Along with other factors, physical inactivityis a contributor to this unhealthy trend.

Yet despite all the documented and perceived bene-fits of recess, it is at risk in many public elementaryschools across the United States due to budget cutsand increased academic pressures, which some be-lieve to be attributable in part to school systems’responses to the mandates of the federal No ChildLeft Behind legislation. Over the last decade, nearly40 percent of schools have reduced or eliminatedrecess from the school day. Both kids and educa-tors are under heightened pressure to abandon theplayground for the classroom.

Although the elimination of daily recess is a multi-layered issue, in Cartoon Network’s exploration ofthe subject it found three key factors on which itbelieved it could have an impact:

� Lack of written policy to protect and standardizerecess.

� Poor or limited school financial and humanresources—ongoing budget cuts have left publicelementary schools across the country withoutthe needed funds to refurbish or buy playgroundequipment or assign staff to monitor recess (Theaverage annual school budget for recess and phys-ical education is $250.)

� Limited scientific data correlating unstructuredbreak time and physical activity with academicperformance, as well as lack of data on the impactof the first No Child Left Behind legislation onrecess elimination.

Why Cartoon Network Got InvolvedCartoon Network has engaged in efforts directed atthe well-being of kids under the umbrella of its causecampaign, GET ANIMATED. The mission of GETANIMATED is to motivate, energize, educate, andempower kids to take action on issues relevant tochildren and families, which it achieves by creatingand/or supporting programs that build awarenessand facilitate action. GET ANIMATED messages,which are integrated into Cartoon Network’s pro-gramming, events, and promotions, are organized

8 January/February 2008 Global Business and Organizat ional Excel lenceDOI : 10.1002/ joe

Exhibit 1. External Advisory Board for Rescuing Recess

The American Association for the Child’s Right to Play HealthMPowersThe Association of Junior Leagues International National Association for Sport and Physical EducationBlaze Sports America National Association of Elementary School PrincipalsThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): National Education Association (NEA)

Physical Activity and Health Branch Washington, D.C. Public SchoolsDr. Sanjay Gupta, Sr. Correspondent of CNN’s Medical Unit President’s Council on Physical Fitness and SportsThe Corporation for National Community Service National Parent Teacher AssociationPoints of Light Foundation and Hands on Network Sportime

Sports4Kids and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

into three categories: Get Active, Get Healthy, andGet Involved.

No other media organization has addressed the im-portant issue of recess cuts in public elementaryschools. With the right partners, Cartoon Networkbelieved it could engage its national media reachand resources to support this cause and create asustainable program. The highly decentralized, ge-ographically dispersed nature of public schools andtheir governance suggested to Cartoon Network thatit could best play a role in energizing action at thegrassroots level—among those most directly affectedby the issue—to change education policy. As a mediaand entertainment organization, Cartoon Networkhas marketing expertise, creative capabilities, anddirect access to children and their parents, whichenables it to inform and influence opinion aboutthis issue, as well as engage and involve various au-diences in fun and lively ways. As part of the TurnerBroadcasting System, Inc., the company could useits relationships with other media organizations topromote and support this effort. The assets it couldbring to the Rescuing Recess program included on-air specials and public service announcements, localgrassroots events, cable affiliate support, print andWeb site creative materials, public relations support,merchandise donations, and cash grants.

The Rescuing Recess campaign would also reinforceCartoon Network’s position as a concerned, respon-sible, and caring entertainment network that investsin the health and well-being of its primary viewers,

kids 6–11 years old, strengthening its relationshipwith not only kids, families, and educators but alsowith advertisers, promotional partners, and electedofficials.

Recruiting Top-Notch PartnersTo ensure that Rescuing Recess was both relevantand timely, Cartoon Network assembled an advi-sory board of prestigious organizations to guide pro-gram development and support program implemen-tation. These partners, listed in Exhibit 1, representthe leading child advocacy organizations and policy-making agencies that are committed to the healthand well-being of the nation’s children.

Assessing Grassroots SupportIn addition to serving in an advisory capacity, sev-eral of these organizations became activation part-ners in specific program elements and activities thatevolved as part of the Rescuing Recess initiative.For example, in 2006 the National Education As-sociation (NEA) and the National Parent TeacherAssociation enabled Cartoon Network to conductdirectional research among their parent and teachermembers to assess the level of “grassroots” supportfor such an initiative. The survey results were over-whelmingly in favor of saving recess:

� Seventy percent of respondents agree that recesshelps a child develop socially.

� Nearly all respondents (99 percent) think recessis important for elementary school students.

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� Three out of four agree that recess should bemandatory.

� More than 50 percent of PTA leaders think kidsare less disruptive in class if they have recess.

� Three-quarters of PTA leaders say a break duringthe day helps kids concentrate.

� More than half of PTA leaders think daily recessis at risk.

� Only 9 percent of PTA leaders are confident thatrecess will not be reduced in their schools.With the value of recess established and key part-ner organizations in place, Cartoon Network em-barked on the design of the campaign.

The Rescuing Recess ProgramRescuing Recess is a multiphased initiative with theprimary objective to build greater awareness aboutthe importance of daily recess and its value to stu-dent wellness and academic performance. RescuingRecess was created to be a companywide effort, withsupport and participation from every departmentin its development and execution, including Mar-keting, Public Relations, Programming, Online, andResearch.

Rescuing Recess is a multiphased initiative withthe primary objective to build greater awarenessabout the importance of daily recess and its valueto student wellness and academic performance.

The initiative seeks to make a sustained impact onthe three threats to recess noted earlier by focusingefforts and resources in the following areas:

� Policy: Promote the adoption of a daily recesspolicy by every state school board by uniting ed-ucators, parents, and kids as advocates for dailyrecess and physical activity.

� Recess Resources—Equipment: Award schoolsgrants and provide recess kits to supplement play-ground equipment for use during recess.

� Recess Resources—Personnel: Build a volunteerprogram that enlists parents, teachers, and com-munity members to be recess monitors on theplayground during in-school recess.

� Research: Commission new research about phys-ical activity and academic achievement tostrengthen public and policymaker support forrecess.

In December 2005, a comprehensive four-week pi-lot program was completed with the Atlanta PublicSchools to test all program elements among 3,500students and 250 teachers in eight schools prior tothe campaign’s national rollout in spring 2006.

The national launch campaign was designed withtwo phases:

� Phase 1, Spring–Summer 2006: A national letter-writing campaign and grant program to buildawareness, create a grassroots call for educationpolicy change, and provide incentives to schoolsin the form of monetary grants that could be usedto acquire equipment and other resources neededfor recess.

� Phase 2, Fall–Winter 2006–2007, Inaugural Na-tional Recess Week: Stimulate volunteering forrecess monitors, and distribute recess kits to initi-ate a series of locally organized rallies across thecountry.

To prepare for the campaign rollout, the net-work produced creative materials that included aRescuing Recess logo, premiums to serve as in-centives and awards, a dedicated Web site toserve as a public communication/information por-tal (www.RescuingRecess.com), and nationally tele-vised Public Service Announcements to support theprogram.

Phase 1. National Letter-Writing and Grant ProgramBacked by its blue-ribbon advisory board, in March2006 Cartoon Network launched Phase 1, be-ginning with a press conference in Washington,


D.C., at which it encouraged children to log on towww.RescuingRecess.com to learn ways to makerecess fun and healthy, and presented the RescuingRecess national letter-writing and grant program.The letter-writing campaign served as an opportu-nity for kids to share their views with their respectivestate boards of education and help raise money forlocal schools.

The letter-writing campaign served as an opportu-nity for kids to share their views with their respectivestate boards of education and help raise money forlocal schools.

To empower kids to raise their voices, Cartoon Net-work created easy-to-use letter templates and letter-head, addressed to local and state officials, for chil-dren to use during class. The initial letter-writingcampaign inspired kids to write more than 104,000letters to their state education policymakers. Kidstalked about what recess means to them and sharedtheir favorite playground activities with policymak-ers, learning about the power of the pen, grassrootsactivism, and advocacy. The network also enlistedthe help of parents and concerned community mem-bers to support the campaign’s goal, and also pro-vided letter templates to the media and policymakersfor adults to write on behalf of local children.

In June 2006, Cartoon Network executives trav-eled to Phoenix for the PTA’s National Conven-tion to award $310,000 in grants to local PTA unitsin 49 states, the Virgin Islands, and U.S. Depart-ment of Defense Schools in Europe that had partici-pated in the letter-writing campaign. The grants, tobe used for recess equipment at their local elemen-tary school, were awarded to the PTA chapters thathad generated the largest number of letters in theirstate, with an additional $50,000 grant given to thestate of Florida PTA, which had the overall highestparticipation.

Phase 2. National Recess Week and Recess KitsBuilding on widespread public support and over-whelming media attention from the spring/summerletter-writing and school grant program, CartoonNetwork, together with its advisory board, an-nounced the inaugural “National Recess Week,”scheduled for September 18–22, 2006. National Re-cess Week celebrates recess as the proverbial fourth“R” among school fundamentals, sending the mes-sage to educators, policymakers, and the communityat large that each is essential to a child’s overall ed-ucation and that every child deserves to have thebenefits of all four within their school day.

Cartoon Network created a number of tools to helpmake the local events associated with National Re-cess Week effective in attracting volunteers and me-dia attention.

Rescuing Recess Kits. The network provided free Res-cuing Recess kits to any school that requested onein preparation for National Recess Week. The kitincluded an instructional game ideas poster, flyers,playground balls, sidewalk chalk, equipment bag,and a recess rally guide. Within 26 days of onlineenrollment, more than 10,000 free Rescuing Recesskits were distributed to schools across all 50 states.

Animated Episode. Cartoon Network animators alsosupported National Recess Week by contributingan all-new episode for the original animated TV se-ries, Codename: Kids Next Door, entitled “Opera-tion R.E.C.E.S.S.,” in which the series’ kid charac-ters save recess from nefarious villains. It premieredon Cartoon Network the evening of September 22,2006, a colorful culmination to the week’s events.The episode ranked third among all shows that airedthat evening on Cartoon Network.

The inaugural National Recess Week was a greatsuccess, kicking off the school year with fun, inter-active events:


� More than 4,600 U.S. cities hosted recess ral-lies made possible by engaged parents, educators,and community members who signed up throughwww.RescuingRecess.com to become volunteerrecess monitors at local elementary schools, pro-viding a much-needed resource to ensure thatchildren enjoy safe playtime.

� At Cartoon Network’s headquarters in Atlanta,115 of the company’s employees donated theirlunch hours on September 22, 2006, to serve asrecess monitors at several local Atlanta publicschools.

� The program also highlighted general school vol-unteerism through partner Hands On Network’sevent in Philadelphia, where more than 100 vol-unteers renovated an entire elementary schoolplayground.

� More than a dozen mayors in key markets such asAtlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles,Miami, and Minneapolis each issued officialproclamations in support of the Rescuing Recessinitiative and the weeklong commemoration.

More than a dozen mayors in key markets such asAtlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles,Miami, and Minneapolis each issued official procla-mations in support of the Rescuing Recess initiativeand the weeklong commemoration.

The week’s activities affected an estimated 5.1 mil-lion elementary school children and their teachers inapproximately 10,000 schools—just about 15 per-cent of all U.S. elementary schools.

Other Measures of ImpactTo gauge the impact and success of the overall pro-gram and prepare for the next school year, CartoonNetwork conducted an online response survey ofschools that received a Rescuing Recess kit:

� 92 percent of surveyed participants said thatRescuing Recess increased their awareness aboutthe status of recess nationally and in their localschools.

� 62 percent said they will continue a volunteerrecess monitor program throughout the year.

� 96 percent said they planned to participate in Na-tional Recess Week in 2007.

In addition to the levels of grassroots participationmentioned above, the campaign generated signifi-cant awareness for the issue of school recess:

� Cartoon Network dedicated national mediaadvertising—billboards, spot cable ads, andprint, transit, and Internet ads in key markets—topromote the campaign.

� The campaign received mention in more than 600initial media stories and more than 1,200 follow-up stories, generating more than 191 million con-sumer impressions.

� On average, the www.RescuingRecess.com Website has attracted between 1,500 and 2,500 dailyvisitors since March 2006.

Rescuing Recess for the 2007–2008 School YearBased on the 2006 online school survey results andother stakeholder feedback, the Rescuing Recess ini-tiative will focus during the 2007–2008 school yearon promoting the human and financial recess re-sources for schools that participate in the program.Cartoon Network is sustaining the initiative withadditional partnerships and a host of enhancementsand incentives.

The Rescuing Recess Volunteer ChallengeMost significantly, during National Recess Week,September 24–28, 2007, Cartoon Network and itspartners issued the Rescuing Recess Volunteer Chal-lenge, an aggressive yet achievable goal for pub-lic elementary schools across the United States tolog one million volunteer hours by interested adultsduring the school day to support in-school physical


Exhibit 2. Print Ad for National Volunteer Challenge

activity. The network teamed with new and return-ing nonprofit and corporate partners to develop var-ious components of a community volunteer programto make it easy and fun for adults to get involved inthe movement (see the ad artwork in Exhibit 2), andto enable schools to easily track such volunteer ac-tivity online. With partner Sports4kids, the networkalso created a Volunteer Recess Monitor trainingvideo, available online as well as in DVD format,which explains how college students, parents, teach-ers, coaches, grandparents, and local business own-ers can get involved at their local schools. The videoand a host of other support resources for the Vol-unteer Challenge and the Rescuing Recess programare available free and can be downloaded from theRescuing Recess Web site (see Exhibit 3).

The network is providing a variety of incentives forthe Volunteer Challenge. Prizes include one $25,000grant, to be awarded in June 2008, for the U.S.school that tallies the highest number of volunteerhours, with $2,500 grants and $250 gift certifi-cates to support physical activity programs in otherschools that rank high in volunteer hours.

Cartoon Network expects that the adults will receiveas much benefit from the time they spend monitor-ing recess as the school children will. “Active vol-

unteerism has recently been documented to providea number of mental and physical health benefits tothose who choose to give of their time, energy, andresources,” says David Eisner, chief executive offi-cer of the Corporation for National & CommunityService, a new partner for the 2007–2008 campaignthat has helped the network develop service learningresources to support the volunteering aspects of Res-cuing Recess. To further stimulate volunteerism andbring its benefits closer to home, Cartoon Network’sGET ANIMATED Employee Council plans to im-plement an employee volunteerism program acrossall of Turner Broadcasting System.

Other Program EnhancementsThe 2007–2008 version of Rescuing Recess will seeother enhancements as well, just a few of which arementioned below:

� A new nonprofit partnership with Sport4Kids,which is supported by The Robert Wood JohnsonFoundation, has produced not only the new Vol-unteer Recess Monitor training video but alsonew scientific research to strengthen the case forrecess.4

� The National Basketball Association (NBA) hasjoined the effort through its NBA Cares pro-gram to further raise the visibility of RescuingRecess. Celebrity spokesperson Dwyane Wade ofthe Miami Heat lent his support to the campaignduring the National Recess Week kick-off me-dia event on September 24, 2007, in Washington,D.C. NBA Cares will host recess rallies in all 29markets during the school year; and Rescuing Re-cess will receive exclusive promotion at the 2008NBA All Star Game in New Orleans.

� Partner Sportime is developing an online min-istore that helps volunteers supplement recessequipment during the school year, with a portionof sales returned to the Rescuing Recess programfor additional grants and prizes.

� Spanish-language resources and survey/researchtools have been added in key media areas.


Exhibit 3. Free Rescuing Recess Resources*

Promote Rescuing Recess Recess Kit & Volunteer SupportTV Public Service Announcement Volunteer CertificateRadio Public Service Announcement Pledge CardWeb Banners: Volunteer Hours Tracking Sheet• Web Packet Volunteer Hours Tracking Log• Banners (full, half, vertical) Recess Monitor Training Videos:• Buttons (1, 2, square) • Part One: IntroductionPrint Ads: • Part Two: Continuous Relays• Full Page (Color, B&W) • Part Three: Switch• Half Page (Color, B&W) • Part Four: Four SquareOne-Sheet: • Part Five: Summary• Front Mural Painting Instructions• Back Outdoor Renovation Project InstructionsPost Card Template (2 sides) Impact of Service LearningE-mail Template Advocacy ToolsPress Release Template Letter Writing Template (Color, B&W)Organize/Promote a Local Recess Rally Mayoral Proclamation Samples (2)Rally Guide Tell People About Rescuing RecessFlyer Template About Rescuing Recess PPT PresentationBanner Creative: Advisory Board List• Banner (Indoor, Outdoor) Awards List• T-Shirt DesignPoster Design*Available as free Internet downloads at www.RescuingRecess.com.

� Continuing to build local support of National Re-cess Week again this year, mayors from majorcities, including Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, andSan Francisco, issued proclamations to acknowl-edge the campaign.

� The network has developed an exclusive mediapartnership with Turner Network Sales and CoxCommunications, among other cable affiliates, topromote the program.

“It’s incredibly gratifying for Cox to team up withsome of our country’s most respected organizationsto support a fun and beneficial program like Rescu-ing Recess,” says Ellen East, the former vice pres-ident, Communications and Public Affairs, at CoxCommunications. “We’re pledging to run public ser-vice announcements across all of Cox’s cable chan-nel line-ups, and we’re looking to coproduce pro-gramming that fully describes Rescuing Recess and

its in-school offerings for our customer access chan-nel. As parents ourselves, we want as many peopleas possible to recognize just how vital recess is tothe well-being of young students.”

The greatest challenge for Cartoon Network is tosustain Rescuing Recess over time and achieve itsmission. Working in the public school environmentto change education policy, as well as measuringpositive change in reversing the trends of childhoodobesity, takes years of consistent investment of re-sources. Starting with the intent to stay the courseallows Cartoon Network and its partners to be flex-ible and utilize their expertise and resources to im-plement a program that is timely and relevant. Mea-suring participation rates and conducting awarenessand impact research provides the documentation ofresults to the program’s stakeholders for continuedsupport.


ConclusionAs of this writing, Cartoon Network’s Rescuing Re-cess campaign has been a resounding success and themost successful initiative in the network’s history.The Rescuing Recess campaign has had a positiveimpact on U.S. public elementary school children byhelping to raise awareness about and safeguard re-cess. Starting with compelling research that demon-strates the value of recess and backed by a panel ofleading children’s health and education experts, Car-toon Network introduced an innovative programthat provides the necessary resources to kids, educa-tors, and parents in communities across the nationto advocate for recess, gaining record-breaking par-ticipation. The program has received more than 15different industry awards and honors that furtherunderscore its contribution. Now in the program’ssecond successful year, Cartoon Network is refin-ing best practices to drive greater future results. Inaddition to serving the nation’s children, the Rescu-ing Recess campaign is also an excellent example ofsuccessful cause marketing. Aligned with CartoonNetwork’s mission, the program serves as an effec-tive model for networks and alliances that supportmutual goals and add value for partners.

Notes1. More information about this is available on the Internetat www.cartoonrecessweek.com/experts say.html.

2. Founded in 1897, the National Parent Teacher Associa-tion (PTA) is the largest volunteer parent organization in theUnited States, with nearly six million members who advocatefor children.

3. Y. Wang & T. Lobstein, Worldwide trends in childhoodoverweight and obesity, International Journal of PediatricObesity, March 2006.

4. Recess rules: Why the undervalued playtime may beAmerica’s best investment for healthy kids and healthyschools (Princeton, NJ: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation,2007). A copy of the report can be downloaded from theFoundation’s Web site at www.rwjf.org/goto/sports4kids.

Vanessa Foster is senior manager of Community Relationsfor Cartoon Network, part of Turner Broadcasting Sys-tem, Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia, where she is responsible forimplementing and executing the network’s cause and multi-cultural marketing initiatives. In her position she leads theday-to-day operations for “GET ANIMATED,” a compre-hensive program that encourages kids to get active, healthy,and involved.


Cartoon network tackles a children's issue by making activism and volunteering fun

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