Childhood-onset overweight and obesity and their health consequences are rapidly becoming major public health problems facing America today. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines overweight as a body mass index (BMI) between the 85th and 95th percentiles, while obesity is defined as a BMI greater than the 95th percentile for children of the same age and sex. The prevalence of overweight children, defined based on 2009 CDC National Center for Health Statistics data, has more than tripled over the past 30 years. Between 1980 and 2006, the incidence of overweight among children aged 6 to 11 years increased from 6.5% to 17.0% while overweight levels for adolescents aged 12 and 19 year olds increased from 5.0% to 17.6%. Not only has the prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents increased dramatically in recent decades, but being an overweight or obese child puts you at greater risk of overweight and obesity in adulthood. In relation to this threat, the possibility of developing serious health conditions exists; these include orthopedic complications, hypertension, heart disease, and type two diabetes, among others. One behavior associated with overweight and obesity in children is a lack of physical activity. Participating in physical activity as a child is important because it often leads to an active lifestyle as an adult. Physical activity can have beneficial effects not only on body weight, but on overall health. Ultimately, if overweight and obese children become overweight and obese adults, they are at risk of a shortened lifespan due to this disease and/or related disorders. Understanding risk factors and potential interventions for childhood overweight and obesity serves as a starting point to address… half of the article…). A future research idea supports this agenda by encouraging the initiation of state and/or national legislation specifically for change toward healthier school nutrition and additional school nutrition education. This legislation would also mandate an increase in the amount of time children are given for physical activity during the school day, as lack of physical activity is a huge risk factor for overweight and obesity. Another idea is to designate a school health coordinator who will be responsible for maintaining and continuing the positive work started by this study. Leveraging the success of this program and others like it will lead to actions at all levels of the socio-ecological framework. Ultimately, a multilevel examination of determinants and interventions must be aimed at preventing childhood overweight and obesity.