A local school wellness policy (“Wellness Policy”) is a written document that guides a local educational agency (LEA) or school district’s efforts to establish a school environment that promotes students’ health, well-being, and ability to learn. The wellness policy requirement was established by the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-265), and further strengthened by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-296). The School District of Palm Beach County has emphasized ongoing implementation and assessment of its “Wellness Policy” also called the “Wellness Promotion Policy (2.035).”
On February 26, 2014, USDA Food and Nutrition Service proposed regulations to create a framework and guidelines for written wellness policies established by school districts that included the attention to the following topics:
- default_titlePublic Involvement
- default_titleContent of the Wellness Policy
- default_titleAnnual Progress Reports
- default_titleTriennial Assessments
- default_titleUpdates to the Wellness Policy
- default_titlePublic Updates
- default_titleMonitoring and Oversight
- Show More
The School District of Palm Beach County continued to inform and update the public about the content and implementation of this policy through the District’s Wellness Promotion Task Force. The Task Force expanded its’ participation of internal and community collaborators by fostering a broad-based approach to the values of optimal health, well-being and ability to support the District’s ultimate goal of improving student performance. Below are a few tools that were used during the 2014-2015 school year to develop, implement, disseminate, and assess the effectiveness of the Wellness Promotion Policy in the District and community.
Wellness Promotion Task Force Meetings
The Wellness Promotion Task Force (WPTF) created a forum for the district and community partners to collaborate in promoting healthier lives. The goal of improving student performance can only be reached by encouraging a proactive approach to holistically address the health, wellness, and safety for all school children and staff, parents, and the community. The Task Force is a coalition instrumental in promoting wellness and fulfilling the requirements under Public Law 111-296. We delivered five successful WPTF meetings in the 2014-2015 school year to discuss current wellness events, showcase wellness efforts, and introduce new ideas and topics . There was great participation from remarkable speakers, district leadership and administrators, students, teachers, parents, and many community partners and stakeholders. The 3rd Annual “Wellness Celebration” featured an encore presentation from Brian Sheen PhD who provided the audience with an energizing message of “Let’s Celebrate Wellness and Ignite Our Inner Firework to bring Imagination to Life!” The celebration provided many tokens of gratitude to individuals that worked diligently throughout the school year in numerous wellness initiatives. This wellness recognition event was a true celebration of success and so many attendees enjoyed the evening.
District’s Wellness Promotion Task Force (FY 2014-2015)
Wellness Promotion Task Force Surveys
The Task Force meeting attendees were surveyed and results of all five meetings were compiled for future assessment and direction of the Task Force.
The new Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-296) requires the District to periodically measure and compare their established policy against other model local school wellness policies. The Florida Healthy District Coordinated School Health website has put together a Florida School District Profiles web page showing The School District of Palm Beach County as a Gold District (2012-2014) and compares other Best Practices. The School District of Palm Beach County is an active member of the Healthy District Collaborative (HDC). The HDC is a group of districts that have made a high level commitment to meeting the health needs of students and staff in order to remove barriers to learning and maximize district resources.
Annual Reports
The School Food Service Department, along with leadership of the Wellness Promotion Task Force and internal and external stakeholders, developed a Wellness Promotion Policy (WPP) Annual Report. This report highlights the many initiatives throughout the community and the district that have been accomplished to continue on our path to wellness. On February 25, 2015 input was provided by the School Board members and changes/additions to the policy were done with Legal Services assistance. On April 22, 2015 the policy was adopted with minor amendments.