Policy 8510 - WELLNESSAs required by law, the Board of Education establishes the following wellness policy for the District as a part of a comprehensive wellness initiative.
The Board recognizes that good nutrition and regular physical activity affect the health and well being of the District's students. Furthermore, research suggests that there is a positive correlation between a student's health and well being and his/her ability to learn. Moreover, schools can play an important role in the developmental process by which students establish their health and nutrition habits by providing nutritious meals and snacks through the schools' meal programs, by supporting the development of good eating habits, and by promoting increased physical activity both in and out of school.
Schools alone, however, cannot develop in students healthy behaviors and habits with regard to eating and exercise. It will be necessary for not only the staff, but also parents and the public at large to be involved in a community-wide effort to promote, support, and model such healthy behaviors and habits.
The Board sets the following goals in an effort to enable students to establish good health and nutrition habits:
- With regard to nutrition education, the District shall include nutrition education in the health curriculum so that instruction is sequential and standards-based and provides students with the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to lead healthy lives.
- With regard to physical activity, the District shall provide within the physical education curriculum sequential instruction related to the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to participate in lifelong, health-enhancing physical activity.
- With regard to other school-based activities the District commits to provide attractive, clean environments in which the students eat. In addition, the District shall utilize electronic identification and payment systems, therefore, eliminating any stigma or identification of students eligible to receive free and/or reduced meals.
- With regard to nutrition promotion, the District shall encourage students to increase their consumption of healthful foods during the school day.
All foods and beverages sold to students as fund-raisers outside of the school meals program during the regular and extended school day for consumption on the school campus shall meet the USFA Competitive Food regulations, the Alliance for A Healthier Generation’s Competitive Foods and Beverages Guidelines, and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards.
Furthermore, with the objectives of enhancing student health and well being, and reducing childhood obesity, the food service program will provide all students affordable access to the varied and nutritious foods they need to be healthy and to learn well.
The Superintendent/designee is charged with the operational responsibility for measuring and evaluating the District's implementation and progress under this policy. The Superintendent shall develop administrative guidelines necessary to implement this policy.
The Superintendent/Designee shall appoint a District-wide Wellness Committee that includes parents, students, representatives of the school food authority, educational staff (including physical education teachers), school health professionals, members of the public, and school administrators to oversee development, implementation, evaluation and periodic update of this policy. The Wellness Committee shall be an ad hoc committee with members recruited and appointed annually.
The Wellness Committee shall be responsible for:
- assessment of the current school environment;
- review of the District’s Wellness policy;
- presentation of the Wellness policy to the Board for approval;
- measurement of the implementation of the policy; and
- recommendation for the revision of the policy, if necessary.
Before the end of each school year, the Wellness Committee shall recommend to the Superintendent any revisions to the policy it deems necessary and/or appropriate.
The Superintendent shall report on the District's compliance with this policy and the progress toward achieving the goals set forth herein when requested to do so by the Board.
The Superintendent is also responsible for informing the public, including parents, students and community members, on the content and implementation of this policy. In order to inform the public, the Superintendent will post the policy on the District’s website, including the Wellness Committee’s assessment of the policy’s implementation.
Revised 3/12/12
© Neola 2014