Friday marked a joyful milestone for 20 fourth-grade students at Lewis Elkin Elementary School as they graduated from our first-ever “Bike Explorers” program, a pilot initiative designed to increase bicycle safety education and foundational riding skills among young riders.
Over the course of four weeks, students participated in two sessions of hands-on instruction, with 10 fourth graders in each cohort. Guided by certified League Cycling Instructor Rudesia Sutton El-Shabazz, the students built confidence and competence in core cycling skills while learning how to ride safely and responsibly.
Bike Explorers Instructor, Rudesia, with three of her students
The program culminated with a celebration of the progress these young cyclists had made, with many of their friends and families in attendance. Councilwoman Quetcy Lozada, Elkin Elementary Principal Charlotte Gillium, and representatives from the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia joined together to recognize the students’ hard work and applaud a community-driven effort to empower youth through cycling.
As a capstone to their achievement, all graduates received brand-new SE bicycles, helmets, water bottles, and locks, generously donated by community organizations committed to equity, mobility, and youth development.
The “Bike Explorers” pilot not only brought bike safety and riding techniques to the school, it is part of a broader conversation about the importance of cycling education across the city. In an environment where riders of all ages and experience levels have seen crashes and difficulties arise from the challenges of sharing the road, programs like this are a vital tool for creating awareness and equipping the next generation with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to ride safely.
Councilwoman Lozada and other community leaders voiced strong support for expanding efforts like “Bike Explorers,” calling on organizations and elected officials to continue investing in bicycle safety initiatives that promote physical activity, independence, and safer streets for all.
We’re incredibly proud of our first class of Bike Explorers and grateful to everyone who helped launch this program. We look forward to returning to Elkin next spring, and we hope to bring the Bike Explorers program to even more neighborhoods across Philadelphia in the future!
As stated before, this program would not have been possible without the support of several community partners, including:
- Council Member Lozada’s Office for providing funding for brand new bikes and our partners at Bike Co. for giving us an amazing deal to acquire these bikes.
- Neighborhood Bike Works who provided the bikes used for the 8-weeks of the pilot program and mechanical support to build the brand new bikes for the giveaway.
- Keystone Bicycles for providing bike locks for all students.
- The family of Jorge Andre for sponsoring the cost of brand new helmets and Cadence Cycling Centers for assisting with procurement of helmets.
- Philly Bike Ride for providing water bottles for distribution across all of our education programs
We look forward to continuing to bring educational programming to priority neighborhoods, like Kensington, and hope that we are able to inspire all of our Bike Explorers to pedal into the future and explore all the roads bikes can take them, in Philadelphia and beyond!
