School Wellness Policy
“Broadening the Policy”
April 2005
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
Student Services/Prevention and Wellness Team
Table of Contents
Introduction………………………………………………………………….2
State and National Resources…………………………………………….3
Broadening the Policy……………………………………………………...3
General School Health Policy……………………………………………..4
Physical Education
Policy Tips……………………………..……………………………5
Policy Example….………………………………………………….6
Health Education
Policy Tips……………………………..……………………………8
Policy Example..………………………………………...... 9
Staff Wellness
Policy Example…………………………………………...... 11
Plan Tips………………………….....……………………………..12
Parental Partnership Policy……………………………………………....13
References…………………………………………………………………15
Appendix A
Comprehensive School Health-Related Policy Topics……….17
Appendix B
Six Critical Health Issues………………………………………...19
School Wellness Policy: “Broadening the Policy”
Introduction
Are you developing or thinking about developing a school wellness policy? If you are like most school districts in Wisconsin, then your answer was “yes”. Many of you will be familiar with the language in the 2004 reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act (www.fns.usda.gov/tn/Healthy/108-265.pdf), which requires the development of a local school wellness policy. The Department of Public Instruction’s (DPI) Student Services/Prevention and Wellness Team has developed this policy guidance packet in response to that requirement.
The purpose of this resource is to encourage school districts to broaden their conception of student wellness beyond the mandated policy requirements. This is an opportunity to assess and develop districts policies related to “other school-based activities designed to promote student wellness” that go beyond but are connected to a healthy nutritional environment, healthy eating habits, and physical activity. In this packet you will find example policies on general school health, physical education, health education, staff wellness, and parent and community involvement.
Plans are in the making to release an expanded version of this policy guidance resource next fall to include issues related to establishing and maintaining a comprehensive school health program (CSHP) that addresses many of the components of school health, including student programs and school health services. In the meantime, for examples of CSHP related policy topics see Appendix A.
School Wellness Policy Overview
To help combat childhood obesity, Congress passed a law requiring each local educational agency participating in USDA's school meals programs, about 95% of all public schools, to establish a local wellness policy by the beginning of School Year 2006-2007.
Congress recognizes that schools play a critical role in creating a healthy environment for the prevention of childhood obesity and for combating problems associated with poor nutrition and physical activity. The law places the responsibility of developing a wellness policy at the local level so the individual needs of each school district can be addressed. By placing the responsibility for the development of wellness policies at the local level and requiring community involvement, Congress has created the potential to deeply engage schools, parents, students, and the entire community in issues of child nutrition and health.
Schools must set goals for nutrition education, physical activity and other school-based activities designed to promote student wellness. Schools must also establish nutrition standards for all foods that are available on each school campus during the school day, with the objective of promoting student health and reducing childhood obesity. Schools are required to monitor the implementation of the wellness policy and to involve a broad group of individuals in its development.
Multiple state and national resources are available to support the development and adoption of school wellness policies and listed below are several of the leading agencies and organizations and their technical assistance Web-sites are listed below.
State and National Resources
1. American Dietetic Association: www.eatright.org/Public/GovernmentAffairs/98_12033.cfm
2. Center for Science in the Public Interest: www.cspinet.org/schoolfood/
3. Food Research and Action Center (FRAC): www.frac.org/html/federal_food_programs/cnreauthor/wellness_policies.htm
4. National Alliance for Nutrition and Activity (NANA) www.schoolwellnesspolicies.org
5. School Nutrition Association: www.schoolnutrition.org/Index.aspx?id=1075
6. USDA: www.fns.usda.gov/tn/Healthy/wellnesspolicy.html
7. Wisconsin Association of School Boards: www.wasb.org/policy/index.html
8. Wisconsin DPI: Starting a School-Community Health and Safety Council, www.dpi.state.wi.us/dpi/dlsea/sspw/pdf/health&safety.pdf
Broadening the Policy
The reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act has generated a lot of energy in school districts to address the issues of nutrition and physical activity. This is an opportune time for school districts to also address “other school-based activities designed to promote student wellness” that go beyond but are connected to a healthy nutritional environment, healthy eating habits, and physical activity.
The U.S. Center’s for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has identified six critical types of adolescent health behavior (e.g., poor nutrition, physical inactivity) that research shows contribute to the leading causes of death and disability among adults and youth (see Appendix B). Schools have increasingly been asked to address these six health behaviors and other important issues that affect children and adolescents.
Wisconsin’s Framework for CSHP provides a clear, practical, systemic approach to developing policies, procedures, and activities to improve student health and academic outcomes. The six CSHP components working together allow schools to coordinate strategies addressing multiple health issues. The goal of CSHP is to promote the health and well-being of students so that physical, emotional, and social problems do not interfere with their ability to become healthy, caring, responsible, and productive citizens. In many communities families, teachers, school administrators, students, and community members are joining forces to promote the health and safety of students and improve academic outcomes.
A student who feels safe and connected to their school, is properly nourished, and healthy has a greater chance of attending school on a regular basis, performing better in the classroom, and becoming a functioning member of the school-community. Below you will find useful policy tips and policy examples that promote the health, well-being, and positive development of students and other members of the school-community as an integral part of a school’s overall mission.
For more information on Wisconsin’s Framework for Comprehensive School Health Programs contact Brian Weaver at (608)266-7921 or .
GENERAL SCHOOL HEALTH POLICY
-Example-
INTENT. It is the belief of the district to strive to make a significant contribution to the general well-being, mental and physical capacity, and learning ability of each student and afford them the opportunity to fully participate in the education process. The district supports the adoption and implementation of a comprehensive school health program at all district elementary, middle, and high schools. The district will work in cooperation with parents, who are the primary teachers and caregivers for their children.
At the center of a thriving school is a healthy, resilient, successful learner. The district recognizes that a well functioning comprehensive school health program will improve the safety and health of all school community members and improve the academic achievement of students.
Every school shall develop, adopt, and implement a broad plan for a comprehensive school health program that shall:
· be designed in response to demonstrated needs in the community;
· be based on models that demonstrate evidence of effectiveness;
· emphasize a positive youth development approach;
· make efficient use of school and community resources; and
· respond to families’ needs and preferences.
PROGRAM FRAMEWORK. The comprehensive school health program plan shall incorporate the following six components within a single framework:
1. Healthy School Environment – the culture and climate that exist within a school that support the physical, mental, emotional, and social well-being and safety of all its members.
2. Student Programs –can help address students’ physical, emotional, social, and cognitive needs. These programs include, but are not limited to, extracurricular activities, peer programs, student assistance programs, and mentoring.
3. Adult Programs – provide information and support to adults directly involved in the care and education of students. The three primary elements involved are: professional development for staff, parent education and support programs, and employee assistance and wellness programs.
4. Pupil Services – include the four core disciplines of school psychology, school social work, school counseling, and school nursing which are organized as a collaborative team.
5. Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment – involves planning, implementing, and evaluating a sequential and developmentally appropriate PreK-12 curriculum that deals with all important health and safety issues.
6. Family and Community Connections – consist of the various formal and informal working relationships between schools, the greater community, and the families that live and work within them. These relationships involve networking, cooperation, coordination, and collaboration on health, prevention, and youth development issues.
Physical Education Policy Tips
Wisconsin statute for physical activity
When developing a physical activity policy for your school it is important to review State Statute 121.02. The basic components of the statute are listed below and many of them should be included in a local physical activity policy:
Time Allocation (required by state law):
· Three days a week for K-6 students of which two are to be taught by a certified PE teacher and the third could be under the direction of a PE teacher.
· Grades 7-8 weekly throughout the year taught by a certified physical educator.
· Grades 9-12 one and a half credits taught over three years by a certified PE teacher.
A policy issue you may wish to consider – Require a K-8 time allocation of 150 minutes of physical activity per week that includes recess and physical activity homework assignments. Require a 9-12 time allocation of 225 minutes of physical activity per week that includes homework assignments.
Sequential Curriculum (required by state law): Development of a sequential K-12 curriculum that includes a student assessment plan.
A policy issue you may wish to consider – Require the district’s K-12 curriculum to be reviewed and revised every 3 years using current National Association for Sport and Physical Education guidelines and the Wisconsin Physical Education Standards.
Ancillary policies to consider:
1. Require fitness testing, such as Fitnessgram, to assess student performance.
2. Require a size limit for physical activity classes.
3. Require adaptive physical education be taught by a certified adaptive PE teacher.
4. Require schools to offer an after school physical activity program to all interested students.
5. Develop a plan for community use of school district owned physical activity facilities.
6. Encouragement of joint physical education activities for parents and students.
PHYSICAL EDUCATION POLICY
-Example-
(The following policy example was adapted from Bogden, J. and Vega-Matos, C. (2000). Fit, Healthy and Ready to Learn: A school health policy guide, NASBE.)
ALL STUDENTS ENROLLED. Every student in each grade, pre-kindergarten through twelfth, shall participate in daily physical activity for the entire school year, including students with disabling conditions and those in alternative education programs.
TIME ALLOCATION. Students in the grades K-8 shall participate in physical education for at least 150 minutes during each school week, and students in high schools shall participate for at least 225 minutes per week.
INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM DESIGN. Schools shall establish specific learning goals and objectives for physical education. A sequential, developmentally appropriate curriculum shall be designed, implemented, and evaluated to help students develop the knowledge, motor skills, self-management skills, attitudes, and confidence needed to adopt and maintain physical activity throughout their lives. The physical education program shall:
1. emphasize knowledge and skills for a lifetime of regular physical activity;
2. be consistent with state/district's standards/guidelines/framework for physical education and with national standards that define what students should know and be able to do;
3. devote at least 50 percent of class time to actual physical activity in each week, with as much time as possible spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity;
4. provide many different physical activity choices;
5. feature cooperative as well as competitive games;
6. meet the needs of all students, especially those who are not athletically gifted;
7. take into account gender and cultural differences in students' interests;
8. teach self-management skills as well as movement skills;
9. actively teach cooperation, fair play, and responsible participation in physical activity;
10. have student/teacher ratios comparable to those in other curricular areas;
11. promote participation in physical activity outside of school;
12. focus, at the high school level, on helping adolescents make the transition to an active adult lifestyle; and
13. be an enjoyable experience for students.
Teachers shall aim to develop students' self-confidence and maintain a safe psychological environment free of embarrassment, humiliation, shaming, taunting, or harassment of any kind. Physical education staff shall not order performance of physical activity as a form of discipline or punishment.
Suitably adapted physical education shall be included as part of individual education plans for students with chronic health problems, other disabling conditions, or other special needs that preclude such students' participation in regular physical education instruction or activities.
ASSESSMENT. All students shall be regularly assessed for attainment of the physical education learning objectives. Course grades shall be awarded in the same way grades are awarded in other subject areas and shall be included in calculations of grade point average, class rank, and academic recognition programs such as honor roll.
HEALTH-RELATED FITNESS TESTING. Health-related physical fitness testing shall be integrated into the curriculum as an instructional tool, except in the early elementary grades. Tests shall be appropriate to students' developmental levels and physical abilities. Such testing shall be used to teach students how to assess their fitness levels, set goals for improvement, and monitor progress in reaching their goals. Staff will maintain the confidentiality of fitness test results, which will be made available only to students and their parents/guardians.
As health-related physical fitness is influenced by factors beyond the control of students and teachers (such as genetics, physical maturation, disabling conditions, and body composition), test results shall not be used to determine course grades or to assess the performance of individual teachers.
EXEMPTIONS. Physical education teaches students essential knowledge and skills; for this reason, exemptions from physical education courses shall not be permitted on the basis of participation on an athletic team, community recreation program, ROTC, marching band, or other school or community activity. A student may be excused from participation in physical education only if: 1) a physician states in writing that specific physical activities will jeopardize the student's health and well-being or 2) a parent/guardian requests exemption from specific physical activities on religious grounds.