FILE:  JGB

Cf:  EE

 

SCHOOL WELLNESS

 

 

The Assumption Parish School Board recognizes that schools play a vital role in improving the school nutrition environment, promoting student health, and reducing childhood obesity.  Recent studies show that unhealthy eating habits that contribute to health problems tend to be established early in life.  The purpose of a local wellness policy is to promote the health of students and to address the growing problem of childhood obesity.

 

The Assumption Parish School Board shall develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive plan to encourage healthy eating and physical activity in all schools in the school district.

 

WELLNESS COMMITTEE

 

The Wellness Committee shall consist of the following members:

 

Parents

Students

School Food Service employees

School Board members

School Administrators

Members of the Public

School Nurses

Physical Education/Health Education Teacher

 

NUTRITION EDUCATION

 

The Centers for Disease Control advocates the need from school-based nutrition education.  There are two broad approaches to school-based nutrition education.  The first is traditional classroom lessons that address general knowledge, attitude, and behavior.  The second is behavioral change programs based on social learning theory.  Nutrition education should be integrated into current curriculum including science, mathematics, English/language arts, social studies and health education.  In addition, the school cafeteria can be used as part of the total educational system for modeling behavior.

 

The Assumption Parish School Board shall:

 

  1. Promote and implement nutrition education programs that promotes lifelong healthful eating habits

  2. Use lessons that are age appropriate, behaviorally focused content that is developmentally appropriate and culturally relevant

  3. Use lessons that are sequential and correlated with standards, benchmarks, and grade level expectations

  4. Provide repeated opportunities to taste foods that are low in fat, sodium, and added sugars and high in vitamins, minerals and fiber

  5. Focus on positive, healthful eating behaviors

  6. Require qualified, certified health education teachers to teach nutrition education

  7. Provide continuous staff development for teachers, faculty and staff

 

SCHOOL MEALS PROGRAM

 

All schools participating in federal school meal programs for reimbursement must ensure that meals meet the requirements set forth by the USDA.  At minimum, meals must serve a variety of foods, including grains, fruits, and vegetables; be moderate in sugar and salt content; and have no more than 30% of calories from fat, less than 10% of calories from saturated fat and contain zero trans fat.

 

The Assumption Parish School Board shall:

 

  1. Provide a school breakfast program with menus that meet the meal pattern and nutrition standards established by the USDA

  2. Provide a school lunch program with menus that meet the meal pattern and nutrition standards established by the USDA

  3. Provide meals with a variety of foods and allow students to choose

  4. Provide all the grains offered to be whole grain rich

  5. Provide  ½ cup to 1 cup daily servings of fruits with meals

  6. Provide ¾ cup to 1 cup daily servings of vegetables with a weekly requirement of dark green vegetables, red/orange vegetables, starchy vegetables, legumes, and other vegetables per week

  7. Provide meals with decreased sugar and sodium content

  8. Provide meals with no more than 30% of calories from fat, less than 10% of calories from saturated fat and contain zero trans fat

  9. Provide a variety of nonfat flavored and unflavored milk with fat content of 1% or less to students with meals

  10. Make available to students free of charge, as nutritionally appropriate, potable water for consumption during the meal service

  11. Encourage school staff and families to participate in the school meal programs

  12. Establish food safety as a key component of all school food operations and ensure that the food service permit is current for each school site

  13. Provide adequate time for breakfast and the recommended thirty (30) minutes for lunch

  14. Provide a cafeteria environment that promotes a positive dining experience with supervision

 

OTHER FOODS AND BEVERAGES

 

Student’s lifelong eating habits are greatly influenced by the types of foods and beverages available in their daily environment.  The School Board shall maintain specific nutritional guidelines of all food and beverages made available to students outside of the school meals program, on the school campus, at any time during the school day starting at 12:00 AM (midnight) the day before until thirty (30) minutes after the end of the normal school day.

 

The Assumption Parish School Board shall:

 

  1. Not use food as a reward for student accomplishment or withhold food as punishment

  2. Require schools to serve healthy food at school parties.  Notices will be sent home to parents/guardians reminding them of the necessity of providing healthy treats for students and/or encouraging the use of non-food treats for classroom birthday or award celebrations.

  3. Restrict fast foods, carbonated beverages, concentrated sweets, and high fat foods from the cafeteria

  4. Discourage the selling of food items of limited nutritional value as fundraisers

  5. Follow the Louisiana Smart Snack Guidelines which applies to all foods sold outside of the school meal programs, on the school campus, at any time during the school day.  Pennington Biomedical Research Center has developed an approved list of snack food items that can be sold in compliance with La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:197.1.

 

PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

 

Regular physical activity can contribute to healthy students and reduce the incidence of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, depression, obesity, and other chronic problems.  Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010 recommends children and teenagers by physically active for at least sixty (60) minutes per day.  Since children spend most of their day at school, it is imperative that schools provide students with the means to participate in physical activity.

 

The Assumption Parish School Board shall:

 

  1. Promote and implement quality physical education programs that emphasize knowledge and skills that promote a lifetime of physical activity

  2. Keep students active for the majority of the class time

  3. Provide many different physical activity choices

  4. Meet all student needs, especially those who are not athletically gifted

  5. Provide activities that feature cooperative and competitive games

  6. Provide activities that develops students’ self-confidence and eliminates practices that humiliate students

  7. Assess students on their progress in reaching their goals

  8. Promote physical activity outside of school

  9. Provide students in grades Kindergarten-8th with a minimum of one hundred and fifty (150) minutes per week of health and physical activity

  10. Provide students in grades Kindergarten-6th with planned, organized, moderate to vigorous physical activity for a minimum of thirty (30) minutes each school day.

  11. Have qualified, certified physical education teachers to teach physical education

 

OTHER SCHOOL-BASED ACTIVITIES

 

There are many school-based activities outside of traditional nutrition and physical activity programs that can influence students’ habits.

 

The Assumption Parish School Board shall:

 

  1. Encourage physical activity during recess for elementary students, intramural programs, integrations in academic curriculum, and clubs, as well as physical education programs

  2. Encourage parents and guardians to support students’ participation in physical activities, to be physically active role models, and to include physical activities in family plans

  3. Encourage school staff to participate in physical activities to serve as role models

  4. Support community-based physical activity programs

 

COMMUNICATION AND PROMOTION

 

The local School Wellness policy shall be made available to parents, students and staff at the beginning of each school year.  It shall be available on the Assumption Parish School Board website.  Up to date resources in reference to the local wellness policy shall also be available.

 

IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION

 

The school district shall establish a School Health Advisory Council that includes parents, community representatives, school board members, administrators, teachers, principal, child nutrition staff, and students.  The School Health Advisory Council shall be responsible for implementing the wellness policy by evaluating the effectiveness and revise as appropriate to increase its effectiveness.  The School Health Council shall meet periodically to review compliance of the wellness policy.  The School Health Council shall submit an annual report to the Child Nutrition Supervisor who shall report to the Assumption Parish School Board on the School Board’s compliance of the School Wellness policy.

 

DEFINITIONS

 

The following definitions apply to the Assumption Parish School Board School Wellness policy:

 

Elementary School:  School with grade 9 and one or more lower grades, but not grades 10, 11, or 12; schools with any single grade or combination of grades below grade 9

 

Food Service:  Refers to the school’s operation of the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program and includes all food service operation conducted by the school principally for the benefit of school children, all of the revenue from which is used solely for the operation or improvement of such food services

 

High School:  Any school whose grade structure falls within the 6 through 12 range and includes grades in the 10 to 12 range, or any school that contains only grade 9

 

Physical Activity:  Any body movement of any type which includes recreational, fitness and sport activities

 

Physical Education:  The instructional program that provides cognitive content and learning experiences in a variety of activity areas

 

School Day:  For the purpose the Assumption Parish School Wellness policy, the school day begins at 12:00 AM (midnight) the day before until thirty (30) minutes after the end of the official school day.

 

School Campus:  All areas of the property under the jurisdiction of the school that are accessible to students during the school day.

 

Schools Meals:  Meals provided under the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program for which schools receive reimbursement in accordance with all applicable federal regulations, policies, instructions and guidelines.

 

New Policy:  April, 2006 Revised:  July 21, 2010
Revised:  February 3, 2010

Revised:  August 19, 2015

 

 

Ref:    42 USC 1751 et seq. (Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act)

42 USC 1771 et seq. (Child Nutrition Act of 1966)

7 CFR 210 (National School Lunch Program)

7 CFR 210.31 (Local School Wellness Policy)

7 CFR 220 (School Breakfast Program)

La. Rev. Stat. Ann.  §§17:17.1, 17:197.1

Board minutes, 2-3-10, 7-21-10, 8-19-15

 

Assumption Parish School Board