Bradford's Wellness Policy

Bradford Exempted Village School District's Wellness Policy

WELLNESS

As required by law, the Board of Education establishes the following wellness policy for the Bradford Exempted Village School District as a part of a comprehensive wellness initiative.

The Board recognizes that good nutrition and regular physical activity affect the health and well-being of the District's students. Furthermore, research suggests that there is a positive correlation between a student's health and well-being and his/her ability to learn. Moreover, schools can play an important role in the developmental process by which students establish their health and nutrition habits by providing nutritious meals and snacks through the schools' meal programs, by supporting the development of good eating habits, and by promoting increased physical activity both in and out of school.

Schools alone, however, cannot develop in students healthy behaviors and habits with regard to eating and exercise. It will be necessary for not only the staff, but also parents and the public at large to be involved in a community-wide effort to promote, support, and model such healthy behaviors and habits.

The Board sets the following goals in an effort to enable students to establish good health and nutrition habits:

1. With regard to nutrition education, the District shall:

Nutrition education shall be included in the Health curriculum so that instruction is sequential and standards-based and provides students with the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to lead healthy lives.
Nutrition education shall be included in the sequential, comprehensive Health curriculum in accordance with the curriculum standards and benchmarks established by the State.
Nutrition education shall be integrated into other subject areas of the curriculum, when appropriate, to complement, but not replace, the standards and benchmarks for health education.
Nutrition education standards and benchmarks shall be age-appropriate and culturally relevant.
Nutrition education shall include enjoyable, developmentally appropriate and culturally relevant participatory activities, such as contests, promotions, taste testing, and others.
Nutrition education shall reinforce lifelong balance by emphasizing the link between caloric intake (eating) and exercise in ways that are age-appropriate.
Nutrition education standards and benchmarks promote the benefits of a balanced diet that includes fruits, vegetables, whole grain products, and low-fat and fat-free dairy products.
Instruction related to the standards and benchmarks for nutrition education shall be provided by highly qualified teachers.

2. With regard to physical activity, the District shall:

Physical Education
1. A sequential, comprehensive physical education program shall be provided for students in K-12 in accordance with the physical education academic content standards and benchmarks adopted by the State.
2. The sequential, comprehensive physical education curriculum shall provide students with opportunities to learn, practice, and be assessed on developmentally appropriate knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to engage in lifelong, health-enhancing physical activity.
3. Planned instruction in physical education shall be sufficient for students to achieve a proficient level with regard to the standards and benchmarks adopted by the State.
4. Planned instruction in physical education shall promote participation in physical activity outside the regular school day.
5. The physical education curriculum shall provide sequential instruction related to the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to participate in lifelong, health-enhancing physical activity.
6. Physical education classes shall provide students with opportunities to learn, practice, and be assessed on developmentally appropriate knowledge, attitudes and skills necessary to engage in lifelong, health-enhancing physical activity.
7. The sequential, comprehensive physical education curriculum shall stress the importance of remaining physically active for life.
8. The K-12 program shall include instruction in physical education as well as opportunities to participate in competitive and non-competitive team sports to encourage lifelong physical activity.
9. Planned instruction in physical education shall require students to be engaged in moderate to vigorous physical activity for at least fifty percent (50%) of scheduled class time.
10. Teachers properly certificated/licensed in the subject area of physical education shall provide all instruction in physical education.
11. Professional development opportunities should focus on the physical education content area.
12. Planned instruction in physical education shall teach cooperation, fair play, and responsible participation.
13. Planned instruction in physical education shall meet the needs of all students, including those who are not athletically gifted.
14. Planned instruction in physical education shall be presented in an environment free of embarrassment, humiliation, shaming, taunting, bullying or harassment of any kind.
15. Planned instruction in physical education shall include cooperative as well as competitive games.
16. Planned instruction in physical education shall take into account gender and cultural differences.
17. On an annual basis, physical education teachers shall review and affirm receipt of the Ohio Department of Health's concussion information sheet.
18. Physical Education teachers shall remove from class participation any student who exhibits signs, symptoms, or behaviors consistent with having sustained a concussion or head injury. The Principal and/or teacher shall notify parents or guardians about the possible concussion or head injury.
19. Any student who has been removed from physical education class participation because s/he has exhibited signs, symptoms, or behaviors consistent with having sustained a concussion or head injury shall not be permitted to return to physical education class until the student's condition is assessed by a physician, and the physician gives the student written clearance that it is safe to return to class.
Physical Activity
1. Physical activity and movement shall be integrated, when possible, across the curricula and throughout the school day.
2. Schools shall encourage families to provide physical activity outside the regular school day, such as outdoor play at home, participation in sports sponsored by community agencies or organizations, and in lifelong physical activities like bowling, swimming, or tennis.
3. The school shall provide information to families to encourage and assist them in their efforts to incorporate physical activity into their children's daily lives.
4. The school shall encourage families and community organizations to help develop and institute programs that support physical activity of all sorts.
5. In addition to planned physical education, the school shall provide age-appropriate physical activities (e.g., recess during the school day, intramurals and clubs before and after school, and interscholastic sports) that meet the needs of all students, including males, females, students with disabilities, and students with special health care needs.
6. All before/after-school programs shall provide developmentally appropriate physical activity for the students who participate.
7. Schools shall discourage extended periods of student inactivity, without some physical activity.

3. With regard to other school-based activities the District shall:

The schools shall schedule mealtimes so there is minimum disruption by bus schedules, recess, and other special programs or events.
The school shall provide attractive, clean environments in which the students eat.
Students are permitted to have bottled water only in the classroom.
Activities, such as tutoring or club meetings, shall not be scheduled during mealtimes, unless students may eat during those meetings.
An organized wellness program shall be available to all staff.
Schools in our system utilize electronic identification and payment systems, therefore, eliminating any stigma or identification of students eligible to receive free and/or reduced meals.
Students are discouraged from sharing their foods or beverages with one another during meal times, given concerns about allergies and other restrictions on some students' diets.

4. With regard to nutrition promotion

With regard to nutrition promotion, any foods and beverages marketed or promoted to students on the school campus, during the school day, will meet or exceed the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards.

Additionally, the District shall:

encourage students to increase their consumption of healthful foods during the school day;
create an environment that reinforces the development of healthy eating habits, including offering the following healthy foods that comply with the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards:
1. a variety of fresh produce to include those prepared without added fats, sugars, refined sugars, and sodium;
2. a variety of vegetables daily to include specific subgroups as defined by dark green, red/orange, legumes, and starchy;
3. whole grain products - half of all grains need to be whole grain-rich upon initial implementation and all grains must be whole grain-rich within two (2) years of implementation;
4. fluid milk that is fat-free (unflavored and flavored) and low-fat (unflavored);
5. meals designed to meet specific calorie ranges for age/grade groups;

5. USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans

All foods offered on the school campus during the school day shall comply with the current USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans, including competitive foods that are available to students a la carte in the dining area, as classroom snacks, from vending machines.

6. Superintendent Approval

All food and beverages that are provided, other than through sale, on the school campus during the school day (which may include for classroom parties and at holiday celebrations) shall comply with the food and beverage standards approved by the Superintendent.

7. Affordable Access

The food service program will provide all students affordable access to the varied and nutritious foods they need to be healthy and to learn well.

8. Selection of Competitive Food Items

The school food service program may involve students, parents, staff, and/or school officials in the selection of competitive food items to be sold in the schools.

9. District Programs

All foods available to students in District programs, other than the food service program, shall be served with consideration for promoting student health and well-being.

10. Food Service Personnel

All food service personnel shall receive pre-service training in food service operations.

11. Professional Development

Continuing professional development shall be provided for all staff of the food service program.

The Board designates the Superintendent the Building Principals as the individual(s) charged with operational responsibility for measuring and evaluating the District's implementation and progress under this policy. The Superintendent shall develop administrative guidelines necessary to implement this policy.

The Superintendent shall appoint a District-wide Wellness Committee that meets at least four (4) times per year and includes parents, students, representatives of the school food authority, educational staff (including health and physical education teachers), mental health and social services staff, school health professionals, members of the public, and school administrators to oversee development, implementation, evaluation and periodic update of this policy. The Wellness Committee shall be an ad hoc committee with members recruited and appointed annually.

The Wellness Committee shall be responsible for:

assessment of the current school environment;
review of the District's Wellness policy;
presentation of the Wellness policy to the Board for approval;
measurement of the implementation of the policy; and
recommendation for the revision of the policy, is necessary.

Before the end of each school year, the Wellness Committee shall recommend to the Superintendent any revisions to the policy it deems necessary and/or appropriate. In its review, the Wellness Committee shall consider evidence-based strategies in determining its recommendations.

The Superintendent shall report annually to the Board on the Wellness Committee's progress and on its evaluation of the policy's implementation and areas for improvement, including status of compliance by individual schools and progress made in attaining the policy's goals.

The District shall assess the Wellness policy at least once every three (3) years on the extent to which schools in the District are in compliance with the District policy, the extent to which the District policy compares to model wellness policies, and the progress made in attaining the goals of the District Wellness Policy. The assessment shall be made available to the public on the School District's web site.

Revised 4/20/15