Board Policies5000 Students
The School Board recognizes that schools are in a position to promote healthy lifestyle choices by students that can affect their lifelong wellness. Therefore, the School District will provide environments that promote and protect children's health, well-being, and ability to learn by supporting healthy eating and physical activity.
Schools will provide nutrition promotion and education, physical education, and other school-based activities to foster lifelong habits of healthy eating and physical activity, and will establish linkages between nutrition education and school meal programs.
Planning and Periodic Review by Stakeholders
The School District and/or individual schools within the District will create or work with the District Wellness Committee that assists in developing, implementing, monitoring, reviewing, and, as necessary, revising school nutrition and physical activity goals. The advisory group should be composed of students, parents, food service personnel, School Board, school administration, school health professionals, physical education teachers, and other interested community members. The advisory group should be provided with appropriate information and clear guidelines to assist in the development and/or revision of relevant policies.
Nutrition
All foods available in District schools during the school day shall be offered to students with consideration for promoting student health and reducing childhood obesity. The Superintendent shall develop and implement nutrition guidelines for all foods available on campus.
Foods and beverages provided through the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Programs shall meet federal nutrition requirements of the National School Lunch Act (7 C.F.R. Parts 210 and 220). To the maximum extent practical, all schools in the District will participate in available federal school meal programs.
All other foods and beverages made available on campus (including, but not limited to vending, concessions, à la carte, student stores, classroom incentive-based celebrations , and fundraising) during the school day between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 30 minutes after the conclusion of the instructional day, will meet nutritional requirement of the National School Lunch Act Guidelines for all Foods Sold in Schools also known as the Smart Snacks at School (Federal Register/Vo. 78, No. 125).
Schools will limit food and beverage marketing on campus to the promotion of foods and beverages that meet the National School Lunch Act, Nutritional Guidelines for All foods Sold in Schools. This includes, but is not limited to, the promotion of marketing of non-compliant food and beverage products on the exterior of vending machines, through posters, menu boards, food display racks, other food service equipment, cups used for beverage dispensing, coolers, trash cans, scoreboards, and school publications. Schools are not required to immediately replace these items, but will demonstrate progress towards removing, covering, or replacing noncompliant advertising. This requirement does not apply to materials used for educational purposes in the classroom, such as teachers’ use of soda advertising as a media education tool; or when implementing a health or nutrition education curriculum.
Health curricula will include instruction on the benefits of good nutrition and the role nutrition plays in preventing, or controlling chronic diseases, and maintaining a healthy weight.
Physical Activity
All students in grades K-12 will have opportunities, support, and encouragement to be physically active before, during, and after school each school day.
Health curricula will include instruction on the benefits of good nutrition and the role nutrition plays in preventing, or controlling chronic diseases, maintaining a healthy weight, and supporting the ability to learn.
Physical education will be closely coordinated with the overall school health program, especially health education, so that students thoroughly understand the benefits of being physically active and master the self-management skills needed to stay active for a lifetime.
Communication with Parents
The District/school will inform and update the public, including students, parents and the community, about the content and implementation of its policies that promote student wellness.
The District/school will support parents' efforts to provide a healthy diet and daily physical activity for their children. The District/school will send home nutrition information and/or will post nutrition tips on school websites. Schools should encourage parents to pack healthy lunches and snacks and to refrain from including beverages and foods that do not meet nutrition standards established by the District. The District will provide parents with information on healthy foods that meet the District's snack standards and ideas for healthy celebrations/parties, rewards, and fundraising activities.
The District/school will provide information about physical education and other school-based physical activity opportunities before, during, and after the school day; and support parents' efforts to provide their children with opportunities to be physically active outside school. Such support will include sharing information through a website, newsletter, or other take-home materials, special events, or physical education homework.
Monitoring, Compliance, and Evaluation
The Superintendent will ensure compliance with established District-wide nutrition and physical activity wellness policies and administrative regulations.
The Superintendent will designate one or more persons to be responsible for ensuring that each school within the District complies with this policy, and that school activities, including fundraisers and celebrations, are consistent with District health and nutrition goals.
The School Board will receive an annual summary report on District-wide compliance with the established nutrition and physical activity policies, and the progress made in attaining the wellness goals, based on input from the schools within the District. The report will also be distributed to advisory councils, parent/teacher organizations, school principals, and school health services personnel, and will be made available to the public.
cf. Alaska Gold Standard School Wellness Policy
Legal Reference:
Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, 42 U.S.C 1751 et se q.
Child Nutrition Act of 1996, 42 U.S.C. 1771-1793
CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS
7 C.F.R. parts 210 and 220, National School Lunch Program and Breakfast Program