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Illinois School Board Journal
January/February 2006
Healthy environment wellness policy goal
by Ruth Jonen
Ruth Jonen is director of food service for Township High School District 211 in Palatine and the current national president of the School Nutrition Association.
In the "war" on childhood obesity, schools in Illinois and around the country have found themselves on the front line — and under fire. Fueled by almost constant media scrutiny, the issue of child health has prompted decision makers, from local districts up to the federal government, to question the various foods available to students on campus.
They have found that meals served by schools participating in the National School Lunch Program are healthy and that school nutrition professionals continue to improve the variety and nutritional value of foods offered in the cafeteria. But the issue has presented school board members and superintendents with a unique opportunity to work in partnership with school nutrition professionals to do even more to develop healthy school environments.
It's no secret that we all share the same goals. We want our students to succeed in academics and in life. We know that achievement depends, in part, on being healthy and well-nourished. Many districts also share at least one common barrier to our goals: inadequate funding.
Rising costs and tightening budgets have led district administrators, school principals, school nutrition professionals, coaches, booster clubs and parent-teacher organizations to use food sales as revenue sources. We all know that high-fat, high-sugar, high-calorie processed snacks, sweets and sodas sell exceedingly well in retail markets. Unfortunately, too many of us in school environments follow the success of the commercial market as a way to supplement our budgets, which sends students decidedly mixed messages about food and nutrition.
A team effort
The trend by schools to rely on sales of non-nutritious foods, combined with a hot spotlight on child health and obesity, led Congress to include a revolutionary mandate in the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004. By the beginning of the 2006-07 school year, all schools participating in the National School Lunch Program must develop a local school wellness policy that addresses nutrition education, physical activity, other school-based activities designed to promote student wellness and guidelines for all foods available during the school day.
The law requires that local school wellness policies be developed by teams that represent a cross-section of the school community. School administrators are joining with school nutrition professionals, teachers, parents and students to develop plans that reflect the specific needs of their individual communities.
While the majority of wellness policy teams around the country are in the early and middle stages of the process, they have several inspiring models to follow. Many schools and districts already have put into place guidelines and policies regarding wellness. And they are arriving at some very encouraging conclusions: Students will buy and consume healthful foods and beverages — and schools can make money from selling healthful options. The School Nutrition Association has gathered dozens of examples of school wellness policies, available from the SNA Web site at www.schoolnutrition.org.
While federal law is a compelling reason to develop and implement a local wellness policy, ensuring healthy students is the ultimate reason why districts are taking these steps. The prevalence of overweight children is a rapidly rising trend with 9 million American children classified as overweight in 2005, triple the number in 1980. School boards in Illinois and nationwide have the opportunity to examine their school environments and make policy changes that will stop the trend and promote a healthy childhood weight for all students.
The following items are useful to consider when developing your own school district's local wellness policy:
Best practices
Local school wellness policies are expected to have a significant impact on tomorrow's schools, school meals and students. But they represent just one of several new trends characterizing today's school nutrition programs. Here's a look at five other best practices that are occurring nationally and in Illinois:
1. School meals are healthier than ever. Menus include more fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and skim and lowfat milk varieties. Even one of the kids' favorites, pizza, can be a nutritional winner. Many processed pizza varieties developed specifically for the school market feature whole grains incorporated into the crust, lowfat cheese and lower-fat ground turkey used as toppings.
2. Commodity foods, which make up a significant percentage of foods used in school lunches, have enjoyed an "extreme makeover" in recent years. Today, schools receive greater variety and higher quality commodities. The government purchases many commercially labeled products, but applies an even higher manufacturing standard. In addition, school nutrition programs increasingly can arrange to process bulk commodity foods into familiar commercial products.
3. Farm-to-school programs are gaining ground. Although there is no single federal program or agency that oversees such initiatives, local communities and state organizations are working to bring local produce into schools. And many districts use the Department of Defense Fresh program to facilitate and expand the purchase of fresh produce.
4. School breakfast is served to almost 9 million children each day, but this pales in comparison to the nearly 29 million children who eat school lunch. More school administrators are paying attention to research that affirms the strong link between academic achievement and eating breakfast at school, and they are working with school nutrition professionals to overcome schedule-related barriers. Breakfast is being served in the cafeteria — but also in the classroom and on the bus. "Grab-n-go" meals are offered in central locations or at school entrances. And operators are capitalizing on a greater array of breakfast products designed for nutritious portability.
5. School meals already enjoy the best food safety record of any foods eaten outside of the home. But school nutrition professionals aren't resting on their laurels. The Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act passed by Congress in 2004 includes food safety-related provisions endorsed by the School Nutrition Association. School nutrition operations must design and implement a formal food safety plan that emphasizes documentation using the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points model. This involves analyzing the specific food preparation steps of each individual menu item to identify and prevent potential risks for food-borne illness.
Through development of local wellness policies, food safety programs and other ongoing practices, the entire school community can work together to make a long-term positive impact on the health and lives of students.