Action for Healthy Kids' (AFHK) Nancy Frank, M.P.H., AFHK State Coordinator, in California explains how one school nutritionist stepped up to provide healthy food for all students and kids in her community. When Sally Spero arrived at San Diego’s Lemon Crest Elementary School as child nutrition director in the winter of 2012, she quickly realized that the summer meal program – which served children in the community as well as those attending the school’s various summer programs – had only reached 60 kids the previous summer and offered foods that didn’t meet emerging nutrition standards. So she did something about it.
With the support of the district superintendent and the school board, Spero applied for and received a grant from Action for Healthy Kids, funded by ...
El Monte City School District lies about 20 miles east of the heart of Los Angeles, California. Many of its children are first-generation Mexican Americans, and 91 percent of the children participate in the free- and reduced- price lunch program. This Alliance for a Healthier Generation school has been making some big changes to the snacks it offers students in the after-school program. Many of El Monte’s students also stay at their schools until after 5 pm, participating in after school activities and athletic programs. The district offered a small after school snack of milk and fruit, but with children playing rigorous sports and expending a lot of energy, the snack wasn’t enough. Instead of getting rid of the program due to low participation, El Monte strengthened it. ...
Connecticut News Station WFSB reports that lawmakers in Connecticut have signed off on a bill, now on Gov. Dannel Malloy's desk awaiting his signature, that will ban chocolate milk from being served as part of the school lunch program. The state lawmakers are stating that if they do not make this move, CT could lose federal funding under the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids (HHFK) Act. HFFK sets restrictions for nutrition of school meals within the national school lunch program. Although this would improve the nutrition for students, taking away foods with higher sugar and sodium, many CT residents do not feel this will be a positive change. They argue that if it were not for the chocolate milk, they do not feel the students will drink any milk at all. To read more about how ...
Boosterthon Fun Run has been promoting healthy fundraising across the United States since 2001. This Atlanta based company has worked with over 1000 schools in 22 states to bring healthy, active fun runs to students as a form of fundraising for schools. Their services provide a nine day program including three main components; a pep rally, Team Huddle days, and a Fun Run. These activities give students ways to be active and have fun at the same time, while doing character building and school pride activities. Fundraising occurs at these events when parents, families, and friends pledge money to students, giving them a set amount for each lap they take around a track set up by Boosterthon on the day of the Fun Run. A Mom's Rising Blogger from the Tampa Bay Area, Denise ...
In 2010 Ohio became the first state in the country to turn the Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s Competitive Foods and Beverages Guidelines, which outline nutritional criteria for snacks and beverages sold in school, into law. Cincinnati Public School District began to make their changes according to this law in 2010 by re-evaluating their vending machine contracts. Jessica Shelly, Food Service Director, found vending machines all over campuses throughout the district. Many were not monitored well and there was nothing being done to keep track of the many different brands/types of machines placed throughout the district. School leaders decided to wipe the slate clean, getting rid of all vending machines and putting out a new request for proposal for machines with timers and ...
Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program participants in Hall County, Ga. are working toward providing healthy snacks in all schools. “The way the Alliance does it is right on,” explained Weirs. “We didn’t have any health efforts in place at the time, and we needed to know what a healthy school should look like. The Alliance gave us the road map, the tools and the recognition. They helped us identify where we were currently, where we were we going and what incentives we needed to get there. The Alliance made it so easy.” The biggest task Weirs, as the district's Wellness Coordinator, took on was getting sugar-sweetened sports drinks out of elementary schools. Many schools are hesitant to make this change because of their fears that sales will ...
Boise, Idaho has a growing Latino population, and many Latino families send their young kids to child care centers after school. Recently, child care centers in Boise received a low standards ranking compared to all other child care centers in Idaho, and lawmakers in the area want to make some changes. The Boise City Council voted in late April 2014 to draft a law that would encourage child care centers throughout the city to set standards for physical activity and nutrition, limit the time kids spend in front of a TV or computer screen and set aside private areas where mothers can breastfeed their babies. The ordinance will also include changes to child-to-worker ratios and training improvements (to include CPR/First Aid) for all workers. A new website would be created ...
After seeing the positive benefits that exercise and physical activity had on their children, two parents teamed up with a personal trainer in Pearland, Texas and formed Fitness 4 Kids, an after school fitness group for children of all ages. When Alicia Watkins was only six-years old she was diagnosed with thrombocytopenia, a blood disorder which causes abnormally low levels of platelets. The disease and steroid treatment she received caused her to be inactive and soon led to a 40-pound weight gain. She also developed fatty liver and was at risk for becoming hypertensive. By the age of 8, Alicia had her spleen removed and was on her way to recovery; however she now had to deal with other health issues related to her weight gain. Alicia's doctors referred her to the hospital's ...
Students at schools across Boise, Idaho are staying fit thanks to two new mobile playgrounds and free programming offered by the city's Parks and Recreation Department. In an Idaho Statesmen news article, Chris Camacho, a recreation coordinator with Boise's Parks and Recreation department, said that some kids might not be able to otherwise afford after school activities.Therefore, bringing after school programming directly to them through the mobile rec is a great way to address gaps in recreation services offered to children. Kay Mack, a retired employee of the Parks and Recreation Department, said she dreamed up the idea for the mobile rec over 15 years ago, but the vision only became a reality in 2008. Before launching the mobile playground the city worked with the National ...
