Wellness Policy

Policy Goals

The School Board shall establish goals and procedures to ensure that:

School Health Advisory Council

The School Board shall establish a School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) to advise the School Board on physical activity for students, physical and health education, nutrition, and overall student health. Council members shall be appointed by the School Board and shall include parents of students and individuals representing the community, as well as school health and food service professionals.

The SHAC shall assist in implementation, periodic review, and updating of this School Wellness Policy. The Superintendent or designee shall be responsible for assuring district-wide compliance with established nutrition and physical activity wellness policies. In each school, the principal or designee shall oversee compliance and report to the Superintendent or designee. School food service staff shall assess compliance within food service areas and report to the Superintendent or school principal.

Implementation

The School Board shall develop and maintain a plan for implementation to manage and coordinate the execution of this policy. The plan shall delineate roles, responsibilities, actions, and timelines specific to each school; include information about persons responsible for making changes; and establish specific goals and objectives for nutrition standards, food and beverage marketing, nutrition promotion and education, physical activity, physical education, and other school-based wellness activities.

This School Wellness Policy and any progress reports shall be maintained on the School Board’s website.

Triennial Progress Assessments

At least once every three (3) years, the School Board shall evaluate compliance with the School Wellness Policy to assess implementation and document the assessment for each school under its jurisdiction. The policy shall be reviewed and updated as indicated following each triennial assessment.

Recordkeeping

The School Board shall retain records to document compliance at the Grant Parish School Board central office. Documentation shall include, but is not limited to:

• The written School Wellness Policy;
• Documentation demonstrating the policy has been made available to the public;
• Documentation of efforts to review and update the policy, including who is involved and how stakeholders are made aware of their ability to participate on the SHAC;
• Documentation demonstrating compliance with annual public notification requirements;
• The most recent assessment on the implementation of the School Wellness Policy;
• Documentation demonstrating the most recent assessment has been made available to the public.

Community Involvement, Outreach & Communications

The School Board is committed to being responsive to community input, beginning with awareness of this policy. The School Board shall inform parents of improvements made to school meals, compliance with school meal standards, availability of child nutrition programs and application procedures, and a description of and compliance with nutrition standards.

The School Board shall use electronic mechanisms (e-mail, website notices) and non-electronic mechanisms (newsletters, presentations, take-home information) to actively notify all families of the content, implementation, and updates to this policy, as well as how to get involved. Communications shall be culturally and linguistically appropriate to the community.

Annual Notification of Policy

The School Board shall actively inform families and the public each year of basic information about the School Wellness Policy, including its content, any updates, and implementation status. This information shall be made available via the School Board’s website and/or district-wide communications.

Nutrition

School Meals

The Grant Parish School Board is committed to serving healthy meals to children — with plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free and low-fat milk — that are moderate in sodium, low in saturated fat, and contain zero grams of trans-fat per serving. All public schools in Grant Parish participate in USDA child nutrition programs, including the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the School Breakfast Program (SBP). School meals shall:

• Be accessible to all students;
• Be appealing and attractive to children;
• Be served in clean and pleasant settings;
• Meet or exceed current nutrition requirements established by local, state, and Federal statutes and regulations.

Water

To promote hydration, free, safe, unflavored drinking water shall be available to all students throughout the school day and throughout every school campus, including where school meals are served during mealtimes.

Competitive Foods and Beverages

The School Board is committed to ensuring that all foods and beverages available to students on the school campus during the school day support healthy eating. Foods and beverages sold and served outside of the school meal programs (“competitive” foods and beverages) shall meet the nutrition standards outlined in 7 CFR 210.11. These standards apply in all locations and through all services where foods and beverages are sold, including à la carte cafeteria options, vending machines, school stores, and snack or food carts.

Food and Beverage Marketing in Schools

It is the intent of the School Board to protect and promote student health by restricting advertising and marketing in schools to only those foods and beverages that are permitted to be sold on campus, consistent with this School Wellness Policy and its implementation plan.

Other Foods and Beverages Provided on School Campuses

The School Board has developed the following guidelines for foods and beverages provided, but not sold, during the school day:

Nutrition Promotion

Nutrition promotion and education positively influence lifelong eating behaviors through evidence-based techniques and environments that encourage healthy choices and participation in school meal programs. Students and staff shall receive consistent nutrition messages throughout schools, classrooms, gymnasiums, and cafeterias.

Nutrition Education

The School Board shall teach, model, encourage, and support healthy eating by all students. Nutrition education shall:

• Provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote and protect their health;
• Be integrated into health education and other classroom instruction through subjects such as math, science, language arts, and social sciences;
• Include enjoyable, developmentally-appropriate, culturally-relevant, and participatory activities such as cooking demonstrations, taste-testing, farm visits, and school gardens;
• Promote fruits, vegetables, whole-grain products, low-fat and fat-free dairy products, and healthy food preparation methods;
• Emphasize caloric balance between food intake and energy expenditure;
• Link with school meal programs, cafeteria nutrition promotion activities, school gardens, and community nutrition services.

Physical Activity

Physical Education

The School Board shall provide students with age-appropriate, sequential physical education consistent with national and state standards. The curriculum shall promote the benefits of a physically active lifestyle and help students develop skills for lifelong healthy habits.

Physical Activity

Students in grades K–8 are required by state law to receive at least thirty (30) minutes of physical activity per day. High school students shall be encouraged to incorporate physical activity into their day. Schools shall ensure that varied physical activity opportunities are in addition to, and not a substitute for, physical education.

Each school serving any of the grades kindergarten through five shall provide at least fifteen (15) minutes of recess — consisting of supervised, unstructured free play — each school day. To the extent practicable, the School Board shall ensure that grounds and facilities are safe and that equipment is available for students to be active.

Classroom Physical Activity Breaks

The School Board recognizes that students are more attentive and ready to learn when provided with periodic breaks for physical activity or stretching. Students shall be offered periodic opportunities to be active or stretch throughout the day on all or most days during a typical school week. Teachers shall be encouraged to provide short (3–5 minute) physical activity breaks at least three (3) days per week. These breaks shall complement — not substitute for — physical education class, recess, and class transition periods.

The School Board shall provide resources, tools, and technology with ideas for classroom physical activity breaks, including resources available through USDA and other health and wellness organizations.

Active Academics

Teachers shall be encouraged to incorporate movement and kinesthetic learning approaches into core subject instruction — including science, math, language arts, and social studies — and to limit sedentary behavior during the school day.

The School Board shall support teachers by providing annual professional development opportunities and resources on leading activities, activity options, and the connections between learning and movement. Teachers shall serve as role models by being physically active alongside students whenever feasible.

Other Activities That Promote Student Wellness

The School Board shall integrate wellness activities across the entire school setting, not just in the cafeteria or physical activity facilities. All efforts related to physical activity, physical education, nutrition, and other wellness components shall be coordinated so they are complementary rather than duplicative, and work toward the same goals of promoting student well-being, optimal development, and strong educational outcomes.

Public schools in Grant Parish shall be encouraged to coordinate content across curricular areas that promote student health, such as teaching nutrition concepts in mathematics, with consultation from school or district curriculum experts.

All efforts to obtain federal, state, or other organizational recognition, or grants and funding for healthy school environments, shall be coordinated with this School Wellness Policy and shall involve the School Health Advisory Council. All school-sponsored events shall adhere to these guidelines, and shall include physical activity and healthy eating opportunities where appropriate.

Definitions

In accordance with 7 CFR 210.11:

• School day — Defined as beginning at midnight until thirty (30) minutes after the official school day ends.
• School campus — Defined as all areas of the property under the jurisdiction of the school that are accessible to students during the school day.