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Parents express concern after President Donald Trump recalls the presidential efficiency test
Oct
The decision of President Donald Trump to restore the presidential fitness test caused intensive debate Among parents throughout the country.
The test, which was withdrawn in 2013 during the administration of former President Barack Obama, will once again require students to perform physical challenges, including miles, sit-ups, push-ups and tests of flexibility. Many parents remember their own experience with the test and express serious concerns about its impact on mental health and self -assessment of their children.
The announcement took place in July 2025, when Trump signed an executive order surrounded by professional athletes in the Roosevelt room in the White House. Secretary for Health and Social Welfare Robert F. Kennedy Jr. It will supervise the program as part of the broader initiative “Make America Healthy”. The Order states that decreasing physical fitness is a “threat to the vitality and longevity of our country” and weakens the economy of America, military readiness and national morale, in accordance with Cronkite news.
Fears among parents
Parents throughout the country share their own childhood experience with the test, and many memories are far from positive. “I remember how painful this program was when we were at school. Traumatic and intimidation. Slurious,” wrote Mike with Salem, New Hampshire, in response to media surveys regarding the return of the test. Similar sentiments are repeated through social media platforms and groups of parents throughout the country.
The original presidential fitness test, which lasted in 1966–2013, required students to achieve specific reference points to win prizes. For example, a 14-year-old girl had to run a mile in less than eight minutes, complete 40 SIT-Andaenedes, current pendulum in about 10 seconds and make 47 curls to qualify for recognition, among others, among others, among others, 29news Reported.
Judy Lobianco, an expert on physical education, who for over two decades worked in schools in New Jersey, believes that the test can embarrass less athletic children, cause anxiety and discourage them from realizing their condition. He claims that contemporary physical education should focus on joy, social interactions and life skills, not competitive tests.
There are questions about the implementation
Parents also question the practical aspects of a lively program, because many wonder if schools with lower results will receive additional resources, better meals and improved physical education equipment.
The Trump administration set a test as part of a wider focus on young people’s health, citing statistics about childhood obesity and physical inaction. Kennedy’s report “Make America Health Again” emphasizes that over 70% of children aged six to 17 years do not meet federal guidelines regarding daily physical activity, in accordance with NPR.