WELLNESS

WELLNESS

po8510Adopted November 10, 2008Revised May 12, 2025

8510 - WELLNESS

As required by law, the Board of Education establishes the following wellness policy for the Whiteford Agricultural School District.

The Board recognizes that good nutrition and regular physical activity affect the health and well-being of the District's students. Furthermore, research concludes that there is a positive correlation between a student's health and well-being and the student's 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.

The Board, however, believes this effort to support the students' development of healthy behaviors and habits with regard to eating and exercise cannot be accomplished by the schools alone. 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 with respect to eating and exercise.

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

  1. With regard to nutrition education, the District shall:
     
    1. 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.
    2. Nutrition education shall be included in the sequential, comprehensive Health curriculum in accordance with the curriculum standards and benchmarks established by the State.
    3. 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.
    4. Nutrition education standards and benchmarks shall be age-appropriate and culturally relevant.
    5. The standards and benchmarks for nutrition education shall be behavior-focused.
    6. Nutrition education shall include enjoyable, developmentally appropriate, and culturally relevant participatory activities, such as contests, promotions, taste testing, and others.
    7. Nutrition education shall include opportunities for appropriate student projects related to nutrition, involving, when possible, community agencies and organizations.
    8. Nutrition education shall extend beyond the classroom by engaging and involving the school's food service staff.
    9. Nutrition education posters, such as the Food Pyramid Guide and USDA's MyPlate, will be displayed in the cafeteria and other appropriate areas visible to students and others in the school community.
    10. The school cafeteria shall serve as a learning lab by allowing students to apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills taught in the classroom when making choices at mealtime.
    11. Nutrition education shall extend beyond the school by engaging and involving families and the community.
    12. Nutrition education shall reinforce lifelong balance by emphasizing the link between caloric intake (eating) and exercise in ways that are age-appropriate and enjoyable.
    13. Nutrition education benchmarks and standards include a focus on traditional and social media platforms (including podcasts, etc.) related to food marketing literacy strategies.
    14. Nutrition education standards and benchmarks promote the benefits of a balanced diet that includes fruits, vegetables, whole grain products, lean meats, fish, poultry, and plant-based proteins, and low-fat and fat-free milk and dairy products.
    15. Staff responsible for providing instruction in nutrition education shall regularly participate in professional development activities designed to better enable them to teach the benchmarks and standards.
    16. Instruction related to the standards and benchmarks for nutrition education shall be provided by highly qualified teachers.
    17. The District shall provide information to parents that is designed to encourage them to reinforce at home the standards and benchmarks being taught in the classroom.
  2. With regard to physical activity, the District shall:
     
    1. Physical Education
       
      1. A sequential, comprehensive physical education program shall be provided for students in K-12 in accordance with the standards and benchmarks established by the State.
      2. The physical education curriculum shall provide sequential instruction related to the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to participate in lifelong, health-enhancing physical activity.
      3. 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.
      4. 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.
      5. Planned instruction in physical education shall teach cooperation, fair play, and responsible participation.
      6. Planned instruction in physical education shall meet the needs of all students, including those who are not athletically gifted.
      7. Planned instruction in physical education shall be presented in an environment free of embarrassment, humiliation, shaming, taunting, or harassment of any kind.
      8. Planned instruction in physical education shall include cooperative as well as competitive games.
      9. Planned instruction in physical education shall take into account gender and cultural differences.
    2. Physical Activity
       
      1. Physical activity should not be employed as a form of discipline or punishment.
      2. 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.
      3. All students in grades K-12 shall have the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities and intramural programs that emphasize physical activity.
      4. All students in grades 7-12 shall have the opportunity to participate in interscholastic sports programs.
  3. With regard to other school-based activities:

    Free drinking water shall be available to students during designated meal times and may be available throughout the school day.
     
    1. The schools shall schedule mealtimes so there is minimal disruption by bus schedules, recess, and other special programs or events.
    2. The school shall provide attractive, clean environments in which the students eat.
    3. Activities, such as tutoring or club meetings, shall not be scheduled during mealtimes, unless students may eat during those meetings.
    4. Students, parents, and other community members shall have access to, and be encouraged to use, the school's outdoor physical activity facilities outside the normal school day.
    5. The schools may provide opportunities for staff, parents, and other community members to model healthy eating habits by dining with students in the school dining areas.
    6. 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.
  4. 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:
     
    1. encourage students to increase their consumption of healthful foods during the school day;
    2. 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 five (5) specific subgroups outlined in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and promoted in the MyPlate materials (dark green, red/orange, beans/peas/legumes, starchy, and other)
      3.  whole grain, whole and whole grain rice products that meet school lunch and breakfast program requirements and, if offered, Smart Snack in School standards
      4. choice of fluid milk from fat-free or low-fat (unflavored and flavored) at program lunch and breaks meals, with one (1) choice being unflavored
      5. meals designed to meet specific calorie ranges for age/grade groups
    3. eliminate foods offered in program meals and those offered as part of Smart Snacks in Schools that are not free of added trans-fat
    4. promote and encourage a variety of choices from the fruit component and vegetable component daily within the school lunch program
    5. require students to select a fruit or vegetable as part of a complete reimbursable meal
  5. All foods and beverages sold to students as fundraisers outside of the school meals program during the regular and extended school day for consumption on the school campus shall meet the USDA Competitive Food regulations, the Alliance for A Healthier Generation’s Competitive Foods and Beverages Guidelines, and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards.
  6. Rewarding children in the classroom should not involve candy and other foods that can undermine children’s diets and health and reinforce unhealthy eating habits. A wide variety of alternative rewards can be used to provide positive reinforcement for children’s behavior and academic performance.

Furthermore, with the objectives of enhancing student health and well-being, and reducing childhood obesity, the following guidelines are established:

  1. In accordance with Policy 8500, entitled Food Service, the food service program shall comply with Federal and State regulations pertaining to the selection, preparation, consumption, and disposal of food and beverages including, but not limited to, the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards, as well as to the fiscal management of the program.

  2. As set forth in Policy 8531, entitled Free and Reduced Price Meals, the guidelines for reimbursable school meals are not less restrictive than the guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

    The sale of foods of minimal nutritional value in the food service area during the lunch period is prohibited.

  3. The sale of foods and beverages to students that do not meet the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards to be consumed on the school campus during the school day is prohibited.

  4. All food items and beverages available for sale to students for consumption on the school campus (any area of property under the jurisdiction of the school that is accessible to students during the school day) between midnight and thirty (30) minutes after the close of the regular school day shall comply with the current USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards, including, but not limited to, competitive foods that are available to students a la carte or as entrees in the dining area (except entree items that were offered on the National School Lunch Program ("NSLP") or School Breakfast Program ("SBP") menu on the day of and the day after they are offered on the NSLP or SBP menu), as well as food items and beverages from vending machines, from school stores, or as fund-raisers, including those operated by student clubs and organizations, parent groups, or boosters clubs.

  5. 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, or from vending machines.

  6. All food and beverages that are provided, other than through sale, on the school campus during the school day (which may include classroom snacks, for classroom parties, and at holiday celebrations) shall comply with the current USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

  7. The food service program will strive to be financially self-supporting; however, if it is necessary to subsidize the operation, it will not be through the sale of foods with minimal nutritious value.

  1. 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, regardless of unpaid meal balances and without stigma.
  2. All foods available on campus at any time 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 well as foods that are served as classroom snacks, from vending machines, for fund raisers, for classroom parties, at holiday celebrations, at concession stands, or at any school-related event.
  3. 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.
  4. The food service program shall be administered by a director who is properly qualified, certificated, licensed, or credentialed, according to current professional standards.
  5. All food service personnel shall receive pre-service training in food service operations.
  6. Continuing professional development shall be provided for all staff of the food service program.

The Board designates the Superintendent as the individual(s) charged with operational responsibility for verifying that the District meets the goals established in this policy.

The Superintendent shall appoint a District wellness committee that 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 the wellness policy. The Wellness Committee shall be an ad hoc committee with members recruited and chosen annually. School-level health advisory teams may assist in the planning and implementation of these Wellness initiatives.

The Wellness Committee shall be responsible for:

  1. assessment of the current school environment;

  2. review of the District’s wellness policy;

  3. presentation of the wellness policy to the school board for approval;

  4. measurement of the implementation of the policy;

  5. recommendation for the revision of the policy, as 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 progress of the Wellness Committee and on its evaluation of policy implementation and areas for improvement, including status of compliance by individual schools and progress made in attaining goals of policy.

The Superintendent is also responsible for informing the public, including parents, students and community members, on the content and implementation of this policy. In order to inform the public, the Superintendent shall include information in the student handbook and post the policy on the District’s website, including the Wellness Committee's assessment of the implementation of the policy.

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.

Nondiscrimination Statement

In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture ("USDA") civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity. The District's nondiscrimination statement below is complementary to the District's nondiscrimination policies, including Policy 2260 - Nondiscrimination and Access to Equal Opportunity and Policy 1422/Policy 3122/Policy 4122 - Nondiscrimination and Equal Employment Opportunity.

Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights ("ASCR") about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:

  1. Mail:
    U.S. Department of Agriculture
    Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
    1400 Independence Avenue, SW
    Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
  2. Fax:
    (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
  3. E-mail: 
    program.intake@usda.gov.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

Revised 1/13/14
Revised 2/9/15
Revised 6/12/17
Revised 4/12/21

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