Colorado School Districts Busy Finalizing Wellness Policies

from School Health Reporter, Summer 2006

By Judy Schure, MS, Co-Chair Pediatric and Adolescent Sports Medicine, The Children's Hospital

School districts representing around 75 percent of Colorado ’s student populations have completed and have received approval or are busy finalizing their wellness policies addressing nutrition and physical activity. These policies are to be implemented by the start of the 2006- 2007 school year. The 2004 Child Nutrition Re-authorization Act requires all school districts participating in the U.S.   Department of Agriculture (USDA) National School Lunch Program to adopt a wellness policy.

Why Wellness Policies?

The nation’s children are facing a health crisis. Few are meeting the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and many are flunking healthy eating and are physically inactive.  The consequences are troubling. In the last 20 years, the percentage of young children who are overweight has more than doubled. Among adolescents, it has tripled.  Childhood obesity is recognized as a national epidemic, resulting in earlier onset and increased prevalence of disease.  National medical, nutrition and health associations are advocating for changes to our school environments.  The American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Dietetic Association,  National Hispanic Association, National Medical Association, and the USDA call on schools and communities to recognize the health and educational benefits of healthy eating and the importance of making it a priority in every school. At the same time, the associations are encouraging their members to provide leadership in helping schools promote healthy eating for our nation’s children. Establishment of local policies that create a supportive nutrition environment in schools will provide students with the skills, opportunities and encouragement they need to adopt healthy eating patterns.

Why Schools?

Schools are a key setting for healthy nutrition and physical activity strategies. In response to requests from school districts for guidance on developing wellness policies, the Colorado Physical Activity and Nutrition Program (COPAN) School Site Task Force/Colorado Action For Healthy Kids (COAFHK) Steering Committee and the Colorado Department of Education formed a work group of health, physical activity, nutrition and education professionals from a variety of local and state organizations to develop policy guidelines for local school districts in Colorado . The local wellness policy criteria are a vehicle to help schools and school districts increase physical activity and nutrition education in schools.

As required by law, a local wellness policy, at a minimum, shall include:

• Goals for nutrition education, physical activity and other school-based activities designed to promote student wellness in a manner the local educational agency deems appropriate. Sample policy language, existing state and local policies, implementation tools and resources are available for:
  • Nutrition education
  • Physical activity
  • Other school-based activities designed to promote wellness
• Nutrition guidelines selected by the local educational agency for all foods available on each school campus under the local educational agency during the school day with the objectives of promoting student health and reducing childhood obesity.  More information is available at:  http://teamnutrition.usda.gov/Healthy/wellnesspolicy.html
• Setting nutrition guidelines for all foods and beverages available on campuses.
• Guidelines for reimbursable school meals, which are no less restrictive than regulations and guidance issued by the Secretary of Agriculture pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) of Section 10 of the Child Nutrition Act (42 U.S.C. 1779) and Section 9(f)(1)  and 17(a) of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(f)(1), 1766(a)0, as those regulations and guidance apply to schools.  This requirement implies that districts must ensure that reimbursable school meals meet the program requirements and nutrition standards set forth under the 7 CFR Part 210 and Part 220.
• A plan for measuring implementation of the local wellness policy, including designation of one or more persons within the local educational agency or at each school, as appropriate, charged with operational responsibility for ensuring that each school fulfills the district’s local wellness policy.  More information is available at:  http://teamnutrition.usda.gov/Healthy/wellnesspolicy.html
• Maintaining, measuring and evaluating a wellness policy.
• Community involvement, including parents, students and representatives of the school food authority, the school board, school administrators, and the public in the development of the school wellness policy.

Other Resources

The USDA Team Nutrition web site at http://teamnutrition. usda.gov/Healthy/wellnesspolicy.html serves as a clearinghouse for resources on local wellness policies.  Colorado Wellness Policy Implementation Guide is an excellent one-stop tool for developing and implementing a district wellness policy. A copy of the guide was sent to each school district superintendent and school nutrition director. It also is available on the CDE Nutrition web site at www.cde.state.co.us/cdenutritran/nutriWellnessGuide.htm.  Simplify the process of developing your district policy by utilizing these step-by-step resources. The CDE Nutrition web site also provides a link to the Colorado Association of School Boards model wellness policy. Included in the Local School Wellness Policy is a comprehensive list of websites for information about nutrition, health policies and participating organizations.

Wellness policy trainings were conducted on developing a district wellness policy. Four regional trainings were conducted in the fall of 2005. These trainings were coordinated with the Colorado Coordinated School Health Programs. Donna Wittrock, Denver Public School retired food service director, and Mary Lou Miller, Jefferson County school district retired physical education coordinator, conducted the workshops. Wellness policy information was shared at state association meetings.  Judy Harrigan, the state school nurse consultant, has presented training on the school wellness policy to more than 400 school district nurses.

Wellness Policy Learnings

Some general observations by district food service directors who have formed teams and completed their wellness policies:

• Food service directors found that presenting an moverview of school food-service programs was invaluable in addressing misconceptions and explaining program rules and regulations currently in place and district processes necessary for complying mwith regulations.
• The committee approach was a helpful venue for hearing and gathering input in the development of the policy.
• Larger committees dwindled in size during the process.
• A number of districts are opting to write a general district policy that meets the intent of P.L 04-108-265, section 204, and an accompanying document that provides details and implementation timelines.  The rationale behind this is that the instructions can be modified without board approval as long as the instructions still conform to the district-approved policy. Since this is a new and comprehensive policy, the district may find changes when they review the results of the implementation.
• Committee members, in addition to community members who are consistently involved in the process, include the school food service director, physical education teachers, school nurses and school health coordinators, if available.

If you have questions or are looking for specific resources for developing or implementing your wellness policies, please contact the author, Judy Schure, at shure_j@cde.state.co.us.

The Local Process: How to Create and Implement a Local Wellness Policy

• Initial Homework – Identify and review existing state laws and guidelines, other school district policies, or your own district’s policies that address wellness topics.
• Identify a Policy Development Team – The law requires parents, students, representatives of the school food authority, the school board, school administrators, and the public to be involved in the process.
• Assess the District’s Needs – What is the current situation around the nutritional and physical activity needs of the students?
• Draft a Policy – Based on the needs assessment, address nutrition education, physical activity, and other school-based activities that promote student wellness, nutrition guidelines, and a plan for measuring implementation.
• Build Awareness and Support – It is important to obtain support from schools and the community for the policy to be smoothly implemented.
• Adopt the Policy – In most, if not all school districts, the district Board of Education must approve the wellness policy before it can be implemented.
• Implement the Policy – Adopting the policy is only the beginning. Implementation can occur all at once or may be phased in over time.
• Maintain, Measure and Evaluate the Effort – As required by law, each school district must establish a plan for measuring implementation of the local wellness policy, including designation of one or more persons with operational responsibility for ensuring that the school is meeting the policy.