Section Four:       Health and Wellness Services

3050 DISTRICT WELLNESS PROGRAM

The Board recognizes the relationship between student well-being and student achievement as well as the importance of a comprehensive district wellness program. Therefore, the district will provide developmentally appropriate and sequential nutrition and physical education as well as opportunities for physical activity. The wellness program will be implemented in a multidisciplinary fashion and will be evidence based.

Wellness Committee

The district will establish a wellness committee that consists of at least one (1): parent, student, nurse or other school health professional, physical education teacher, school food service representative, Board member, school administrator, member of the public, an Association representative, and other community members as appropriate. If available, a qualified, credentialed nutrition professional will be a member of the wellness committee.

The wellness committee will meet at least twice a year to assess district wellness goals.  Each building should have at least one representative in their building to disseminate information and report wellness initiatives. 

Wellness Program Coordinator

The Board designates the following individual(s) as wellness program coordinator(s):  Physical Education/Health Coordinator. Only employees of the district who are members of the wellness committee may serve as wellness program coordinators. Wellness coordinators, in consultation with the wellness committee, will be in charge of implementation and evaluation of this policy.

Wellness program coordinators are responsible for ensuring that each school in the district is in compliance with district wellness policy, processes and practices as stated in the wellness policy and procedures manual.  An audit committee made up of wellness committee members will conduct random product evaluation of food and beverage sales to ensure compliance with USDA regulations.  Findings will be reported to the committee for review and appropriate measures will be taken to correct the issue.  An open line of confidential communication will be developed to ensure the anonymity of all staff.   Meetings, records and votes of the wellness committee will adhere to the requirements of the Missouri Sunshine Law.

Nutrition Guidelines

All foods and beverages sold to students during the school day on any property under the jurisdiction of the district will meet the nutrition standards established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and District guidelines. These nutrition standards apply to all food and beverages sold to students, including those sold in vending machines, school stores, and through district-sponsored fundraisers (which encompasses fundraising conducted by district-sponsored and student initiated groups), unless an exemption applies.  Fundraisers must adhere to district fundraiser procedures.  School administrators and staff shall monitor and restrict the sale of food to students by students and staff that have not been authorized by the principal.   For the purposes of this procedure policy only, the school day is the time period from the midnight before to 30 minutes after the official school day.

Fundraising Exemption to Nutrition Guidelines

Unless otherwise prohibited by Board policies or limitations on marketing, the following are exemptions to the rule requiring that foods sold as fundraisers meet USDA standards:

1. Foods sold off campus, outside the school day, or to nonstudents do not have to meet the USDA standards.
2. Distribution of order forms for and delivery of foods that do not meet USDA standards and are not intended for consumption at school are permitted during the school day to the extent it otherwise complies with district policies and procedures.
3. Each school building within the district may hold up to five one day fundraisers per school year on district property during the school day that involve the sale of foods that do not meet USDA standards.

Celebrations and Rewards

All foods offered on the school campus will meet or exceed the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards, including through:

1. Celebrations and parties. The district will provide a list of healthy party ideas to parents and teachers, including non-food celebration ideas.
2. Classroom snacks brought by parents.
3. Rewards and incentives. Foods and beverages will not be used as a reward, or withheld as punishment for any reason, such as for performance or behavior.

Nutrition Promotion and Education

The district will provide nutrition education aligned with National and State standards in Health/Physical Education.  In addition, the district will disseminate nutrition messages and other nutrition-related materials received from the USDA to students, staff and the community through a variety of media and methods.  The District will maintain a wellness webpage on the district website. The wellness program coordinator(s), in consultation with the wellness committee, will develop and oversee procedures that address nutrition education and promotion.  A wellness procedures handbook will be distributed to all schools and programs and will be maintained and updated accordingly.

Physical Activity and Education

The district will provide physical education and opportunities for health and physical activity consistent with National and State standards. All district schools shall meet or exceed the state recommendation of health and physical education instruction.   The wellness coordinator will ensure that students are meeting or exceeding the recommended minutes of Physical Education and Health.   Procedures will be maintained and updated in the wellness procedures handbook. 

Other School-Based Activities

The wellness program coordinator(s), in consultation with the wellness committee, are charged with developing district wellness goals and procedures addressing other school-based activities to promote health and wellness with students and staff. 

Accountability and Evaluation

The District and wellness coordinator will develop and maintain a plan for implementation to manage and coordinate the execution of this wellness policy.   Progress of district wellness goals and procedures will be evaluated and updated accordingly. 

Recordkeeping

The District will retain records to document compliance with the USDA regulations and requirements of the wellness policy and specified procedures in the finance office as well as the district website.  The documents that must be maintained will be outlined in the wellness procedures manual. 

 Annual Notification of Policy

The District will actively inform families and the public each year of basic information about this policy, including its content, any updates to the policy and implementation status. The District will make this information available via the district website and/or district-wide communications.   The USDA requirements of the annual notification will be outlined in the wellness procedures manual. 

Triennial Progress Assessments

At least once every three years, the District will evaluate compliance with the wellness policy to assess the implementation of the policy and:

1. Assess all education curricula and materials pertaining to wellness for accuracy, completeness, balance and consistency with national, state and district’s educational goals and standards.
2. Review the extent to which schools under the jurisdiction of the district are in compliance with the wellness policy and corresponding procedures;
3. Provide a description of the progress made in attaining the goals of the District’s wellness policy and wellness plan goals.

The wellness coordinator and district administrator responsible for wellness will annually report to the Board regarding the content and implementation of the wellness program. 

Adopted 04/06, Revised 04/12, 03/15, 6/17