District 203 Wrestles with Gym Waiver Board Faces Opposition to Cutting Back Physical Education Classes

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Byline: Deborah Johnson Daily Herald Staff Writer

When Katie Johnson's English teacher asked her to write an essay about something that changed her life, the Naperville Central High School student thought back to her junior high days.

That was where Katie, who struggled with asthma and never had gone out for sports, learned the importance of daily exercise.

In her essay, titled "The Run," Katie recounted the apprehension she felt when she learned she would have to run "the mile" every week as part of her junior high physical education class.

The first time, Katie said, it was awful. She was the last one to finish and thought her lungs were going to burst.

But every week Katie grew stronger and stronger until by the …