Eric Knutson is a grant specialist and a chief school business official intern with CUSD 300 in Carpentersville, Illinois.
A district-wide rally to meet a challenge is an obvious way to unify a school district to achieve a common goal. Community Unit School District 300 in Carpentersville has taken on the HealthierUS School Challenge to improve the wellness environment for our students.
School districts currently face what seem like insurmountable obstacles caused by a poor economy and state budget cuts. But Ken Arndt, D300’s superintendent, sees hope in a uniform effort.
“A unified district-wide effort to reduce childhood obesity will rally a sense of teamwork and collaboration to meet the challenges,” he said. “D300 recognizes that a healthy student body is essential to our success.”
The district’s call for action is shared by First Lady Michelle Obama, who has rallied the nation with her Let’s Move campaign to conquer childhood obesity within a generation.
“The physical and emotional health of an entire generation and the economic health and security of our nation are at stake,” she said.
The Let’s Move campaign recommends specific actions, including endorsement of the HealthierUS School Challenge, as a way for schools to make wellness improvements. The First Lady wants to double the number of schools participating in the Challenge.
The American Association of School Administrators also has committed to ensuring that an additional 2,000 schools meet the HealthierUS School Challenge over the next two years.
D300 is home to 17 of the 21 Illinois elementary schools awarded grants for the HealthierUS School Challenge this year. D300 received $56,000 in funding from the Illinois Nutrition and Education Training (IL-NET) program in preparation to take the Challenge during the 2010–11 school year.
The Challenge is a voluntary recognition program from USDA that recognizes outstanding achievement in healthier school environments. The criteria for evaluation include rigorous standards for the food quality of meal programs served, physical activity and nutrition education. It also provides recognition for schools that meet these standards. D300 wellness teams have developed the following strategies:
• Build on existing credibility: D300 successfully initiated breakfast service for 11 new schools this year through Illinois State Board of Education Breakfast Startup Grants. The D300 Breakfast Initiative had its own challenges, so we applied the lessons learned to the HealthierUS School Challenge. We increased the number of breakfasts served by 30 percent or 833 meals per day in the district. We used the credibility from the Breakfast Initiative to earn the HealthierUS School Challenge grant from IL-NET. The school teams know we are capable of addressing obstacles and making positive change by that successful past effort.
• Communicate: Communication is essential for the understanding of any program’s goals. Press releases from the communications staff have been essential to educating and spreading the word in our district. Frequent website announcements and communications on both the district and individual school websites have informed the community. Upon being awarded the grant, staff immediately made a special presentation to school board members and the public to inform them and answer questions regarding the Challenge. We got the word out early to establish a strong, passionate base of support.
• Partner with existing stakeholders: In addition to our communications staff, we made sure to engage other departments. Essential partners include our food service provider, Aramark, and our school wellness committee. The grants required identification of a project manager and documentation of the support of the school principal, a physical education teacher and school nurses. All of us literally got “on board” with a bus load of 35 attendees participating in the initial training, which was hosted by IL-NET in Urbana.
• Stay focused on the positive: Once we spread the word, passionate people have responded. The subject of wellness and obesity can be very personal. Many people feel anxiety about the subject due to their own personal health issues, weight status and diet choices. We were sure to find individuals who provide encouragement and tap into the positive aspects of future change. The message is to avoid dwelling on any perceived negatives of the current situation, and instead focus on the change that you can make.
We have reached out to Mrs. Obama to make her aware of our efforts and to join the D300 HealthierUS School Challenge. Wish us well — we hope our experience will assist other districts in these efforts.