WaYne County Schools Honored by the alliance for a healthier generation for FIGHTING childhood obesity

Food Service Director Karen Gibson traveled to National Healthy Schools Forum in Little Rock, Ark. and received National Award for Increasing Healthy Eating and Physical Activity

October , 2012–The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, founded by the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation, recognizedWayne County High School for transforming its campus into a healthy place for students and staff.

To earn the National Recognition Award Wayne County High School improved its nutrition services and physical activity programs to meet or exceed stringent standards set by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program. The Healthy Schools Program provides expert advice and resources at no cost to more than 15,000 schools nationwide to help them reverse the childhood obesity epidemic. Schools are eligible for Bronze, Silver, or Gold National Recognition Awards based on their level of achievement. Wayne County High School is one of more than 250 schools from around the country honored at the Healthy Schools Program Forum in Little Rock, Ark.

As a recipient of the BRONZE National Recognition Award, Wayne County High School was recognized during the January monthly Board of Education meeting after Gibson was first honored at the national meeting in Little Rock, Ark for the high school’s coordinated efforts to increase healthy eating and physical activity. Gibson was amongst four Kentucky schools who were receiving the BRONZE award.

Wayne County Superintendent John Dalton was pleased to have his staff members recognized by Kentucky Healthy School Program Manager Melissa McDonald, who is based in Lexington.She congratulated Wayne County employees who coordinated the local program which ties into the Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s goal promoting physical activity and proper nutrition. She shared the past three year history of their joint work with the board members.

“The award-winning schools have demonstrated diligence and creativity that serve as an inspiration for other schools locally and nationally,” said Ginny Ehrlich, chief executive officer of the Alliance for a Healthier Generation.

To further strengthen the Healthy Schools Program, the Alliance brokers and implements voluntary agreements with industry leaders to provide schools better access to healthier foods, beverages, and physical activity. In 2011, the Alliance announced new voluntary agreements that brought together leading food manufacturers, group purchasing organizations and technology companies to help America’s schools serve healthier meals at more affordable prices. As a result of these agreements, more than 30 million students across the country will have access to healthier school meals – including at least 14 million students who currently participate in the free and reduced lunch program. Additionally, the Alliance’s landmark agreement with the American Beverage Association has contributed to a 90 percent reduction in calories from beverages shipped to schools between the 2004-2010 school years.

The Healthy Schools Program is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. To become a healthier place for students to learn and staff to work, any school in the United States can enroll and receive assistance and support, at no cost. Find out more at HealthierGeneration.org.

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About the Alliance for a Healthier Generation

The goal of the Alliance is to reduce the nationwide prevalence of childhood obesity by 2015, and to empower kids nationwide to make healthy lifestyle choices. The American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation joined forces in May of 2005 to create a healthier generation by addressing one of the nation’s leading public health threats – childhood obesity. The Alliance works to positively affect the places that can make a difference to a child’s health: homes, schools, restaurants, doctor’s offices and communities. For more information please visit: HealthierGeneration.org.

About the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, measureable and timely change. For 40 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime. For more information, visit

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Media Contacts:

Alliance for a Healthier Generation

Abby Manishor, 917-539-3308

(For more information contact Linda Jones 606-348-8484)