Seton Catholic School Wellness Policy

Adopted 4/17
Revised 5/16/19

Seton Catholic School strives to educate the whole person in mind, body and soul. In educating students about the body, they strive to develop a profound reverence for the great gift of life, their own lives and the lives of others, along with readiness to spend themselves in serving all that preserves and enhances life.

The Seton Catholic School Board of Education strives to maintain a learning and working environment that promotes and protects children’s health, well-being and ability to learn by supporting healthy eating and physical activity.

 

Archdiocesan Board of Education Policy #6145

 

Seton Catholic School supports and promotes proper dietary habits contributing to students’ health status and academic performance. Foods available on school grounds and at school- sponsored activities during the instructional day should meet or exceed Seton Catholic School’s nutrition standards. Foods should be served with consideration toward nutritional integrity, variety, appeal, taste, safety and packaging to ensure high-quality meals.

Seton Catholic School has developed a School Improvement Advisory Committee (SIAC) comprised of representatives from administration, parents, students, and leaders in food/exercise authority and employees. The local SIAC committee has developed a plan to implement and measure the wellness policy and monitor the effectiveness of the policy. The committee will report annually to the Seton Catholic School Board regarding the effectiveness of this policy.

Specific Wellness Goals:

  • Nutrition Education and Promotion
  • Nutrition Guidelines for all Foods Available on Campus
  • Physical Activity
  • Implementation and Evaluation

 

NUTRITION EDUCATION AND PROMOTION 

 

Seton Catholic School will provide nutrition education and engage in nutrition promotion that:

  • is offered as part of a sequential, comprehensive, standards-based program, which is part not only of physical education classes, but also part of classroom instruction in other subject areas;
  • includes promotion of enjoyable, developmentally appropriate, culturally relevant participatory activities, such as contests, promotions, taste-testing, farm visits and school gardens;
  • promotes fruits, vegetables, whole-grain products, low-fat and fat-free dairy products, healthy food preparation methods and health-enhancing nutrition practices;
  • emphasizes caloric balance between food intake and physical activity;
  • links with meal programs, other foods and nutrition-related community services.

 

 

NUTRITION GUIDELINES FOR ALL FOODS AVAILABLE ON CAMPUS

General Directives
Food Safety

All foods made available on campus will follow food safety and security guidelines and comply with the state and local food safety and sanitation regulations. Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plans and guidelines will continue to be implemented to prevent food illness in schools. For the safety and security of the food and facility, access to the food service operations should be limited to food service staff and authorized personnel.

 

Sharing of Foods

Seton Catholic School discourages students from sharing their foods or beverages with one another during meal or snack times, given concerns about allergies and other restrictions on some children’s diets.

 

Food Service Department

Seton Catholic School Food Service Department will

  • engage students in selecting food offered through the meal program in order to identify new, healthful and appealing food choices. Parent feedback is welcome;
  • share information about the nutritional content of meals with parents and students.

 

Qualification of Food Service Staff

Qualified nutrition professionals will administer the meal programs. As part of Seton Catholic School”s responsibility to operate a food service program, Seton Catholic School will:

·· provide the USDA established-continuing education hours and training for all food service employees.

School Meals 

Meals served through the National School Lunch Program will:

  • be appealing and attractive to students;
  • be served in clean and pleasant settings;
  • meet nutrition requirements established by local, state and federal law;
  • include a variety of fruits and vegetables and menu choices.

 

 

Free and Reduced-Priced Meals Program

Seton Catholic School will continue to make every effort in eliminating any social stigma attached to, and in preventing the overt identification of, students who are eligible for free and reduced- price meals.

Toward this end, Seton Catholic School will:

  • provide continuing professional development for all nutrition professionals;
  • provide staff development programs that include appropriate certification and/or training programs
  • utilize electronic identification systems;
  • promote the availability of meals to all students.

Meal Times and Scheduling

Each school will:

  • allow adequate time for students to receive and consume meals and provide a pleasant dining environment;
  • schedule meal periods at appropriate times, e.g., lunch periods scheduled between 11am and 1pm;
  • not schedule tutoring, club or organizational meetings or activities during mealtimes, unless students may eat during such activities;
  • provide students access to handwashing or hand sanitizing before they eat meals or snacks.

 

Beverage and Food

Seton Catholic School will follow The Smart Snacks in School standards published by the USDA, building on the healthy advancements by ensuring that snack foods and beverages sold to the students in addition to those foods provided through the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program are also tasty and nutritious. Any food and beverage sold during the school day must meet the nutrition standards. As defined by the USDA, the school day is anytime before the first bell until 30 minutes after the last bell.

 

Special Events Snacks

 

Snacks served during the school day should make a positive contribution to children’s diets and health, with an emphasis on serving fruits and vegetables as the primary snacks and healthy beverages conforming to this policy. Schools will assess if and when to offer snacks based on timing of meals, children’s nutritional needs, children’s ages and other considerations.

 

Rewards

Schools are encouraged to offer nonfood forms of rewards. If food or beverage rewards are used for academic performance or good behavior, they should conform to this policy. Schools will not withhold beverages or food (including food served through meals) as a punishment.

 

Celebrations

Schools will evaluate their celebration practices that involve beverage and food during the school day. The food used in celebration practices should make a positive contribution to children’s diets and health, with an emphasis on serving fruits and vegetables as the primary snacks and healthy beverages conforming to this policy.

 

Fundraising

To support children’s health and school nutrition-education efforts, in-school fundraising activities should use foods that meet the above nutrition and portion-size standards for beverages and foods. Seton Catholic School encourages fundraising activities that promote physical activity.

 

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

Wellness education is an important and integral part of the education of students at Seton Catholic School.

 

Physical Education

Seton Catholic School will provide wellness education that:

  • includes students with disabilities;
  • engages students in moderate to vigorous activity during at least 75 percent of physical education class time;
  • meets regularly for the scheduled period of time it will allow at the elementary school level and middle school level;
  • is taught by a certified physical education teacher.

 

Physical Activity Opportunities after School

 

To provide opportunities for physical activity outside the regular physical education classes, all grades are encouraged to:

  • offer a range of activities that meet the needs, interests, and abilities of all students, including students with disabilities and students with special health-care needs;
  • offer information about community agencies such as the Department of Leisure Services and the Dubuque Community Y to offer a maximum number of physical activity opportunities;
  • publicize and promote participation in community events and programs that involve physical activity.

Middle schools students will have the opportunity to participate in interscholastic sports programs.

 

Daily Recess

 

Elementary schools will offer recess for students that are preferably outdoors (criteria should be established for when indoor recess occurs). Recess should encourage moderate to vigorous physical activity verbally and through the provision of space and equipment.

Seton Catholic School will discourage extended periods (i.e. periods of two or more hours) of inactivity. When activities, such as mandatory school-wide testing, make it necessary for students to remain indoors for long periods of time, schools will give students periodic breaks during which they are encouraged to stand and be moderately active.

 

Integrating Physical Activity into Classroom Settings

 

For students to receive the nationally recommended amount of daily physical activity and for students to fully embrace regular physical activity as a personal behavior, students need opportunities for physical activity beyond the physical education class. Toward that end, Seton Catholic School will:

  • offer integrated health education that complements physical education by reinforcing the knowledge and self-management skills needed to maintain a physically active lifestyle and to reduce time spent on sedentary activities;
  • provide opportunities for physical activity to be incorporated into other subject lessons;
  • encourage classroom teachers to provide short physical activity breaks during lessons or classes, as Appropriate.

 

Physical Activity and Punishment

 

Employees will not use physical activity (e.g., running laps, pushups) or routinely withhold opportunities for physical activity (e.g. recess, physical education) as punishment. Physical activity may be used as an accommodation for students demonstrating a specific need for activity.

 

IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION 

Communication with Parents

Seton Catholic School will support parents’ efforts to provide a healthy diet and daily physical activity for their children. Seton Catholic School will:

  • provide information about physical education and other school-based physical activity opportunities before, during and after the school day;
  • support parents’ efforts to provide their children with opportunities to be physically active outside of school

 

Staff Wellness

 

Seton Catholic School values the health and well being of every staff member and encourages activities and policies that support personal efforts by staff to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

 

Monitoring

 

The School Administrator will ensure compliance with established school district-wide nutrition and physical activity wellness policies.

In each school:

  • the principal will ensure compliance with these policies
  • food service staff, at the school level, will ensure compliance with nutrition policies within food service areas and will report on matter to the Food Service Director
  • Seton Catholic School will report on the most recent USDA School Meals Initiative (SMI) review findings and any resulting changes.

Policy Review

 

The School Administrator will review the nutrition and physical activity policies and practices

and the provision of an environment that supports healthy eating and physical activity at the end of the school year. Seton Catholic School will revise the wellness policies and develop work plans to facilitate their implementation.

Seton Catholic School Wellness Policy Annual Goals–Options for each goal area are listed. Current goal is bolded. Goals will be reviewed each year at the annual SIAC meeting and reported to the Seton Catholic School Board: 

Goal 1 – Nutrition Education and Promotion: Schools will provide nutrition education and engage in nutrition promotion that help students develop lifelong healthy eating behaviors. The goal(s) for addressing nutrition education and nutrition promotion include the following [Select goals) from the list below]:

  • [Provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote and protect their health];
  • [Ensure nutrition education and promotion are not only part of health education classes, but also integrated into other classroom instruction through subjects such as math, science, language arts, social sciences, and elective subjects];
  • [Include enjoyable, developmentally-appropriate, culturally-relevant, and participatory activities, such as cooking demonstrations or lessons, promotions, taste-testing, farm visits, and school gardens];
  • [Promote fruits, vegetables, whole-grain products, low-fat and fat-free dairy products, and healthy foods];
  • [Emphasize caloric balance between food intake and energy expenditure (promotes physical activity/exercise)];
  • [Link with school meal programs, cafeteria nutrition promotion activities, school gardens, Farm to School programs, other school foods, and nutrition-related community services];
  • [Implement evidence-based healthy food promotion techniques through the school meal programs using Smarter Lunchroom techniques];
  • [Teach media literacy with an emphasis on food and beverage marketing];
  • [Include nutrition education training for teachers and other staff]; and/or
  • [Insert other district identified goals].

 

 

Goal 2 – Physical Activity: Schools will provide students and staff with age and grade appropriate opportunities to engage in physical activity that meet federal and state guidelines, including the Iowa Healthy Kids Act. The goal(s) for addressing physical activity include the following [Select goals) from the list below]:

  • Develop a comprehensive, school-based physical activity program (CSPAP), that includes the following components:
    • Physical education, recess;
    • Classroom-based physical activity;
    • Walk to school; and
    • Out of school time activities;
  • [Promote the benefits of a physically active lifestyle and help students develop skills to engage in lifelong healthy habits];
  • [Engage students in moderate to vigorous activity during at least 50 percent of physical education class time];
  • [Encourage classroom teachers to provide short physical activity breaks (3-5 minutes), as appropriate];
  • [Encourage teachers to incorporate movement and kinesthetic learning approaches into core subject instructions when possible];
  • [Offer classroom health education that complements physical education by reinforcing the knowledge and self-management skills needed to maintain a physically active lifestyle];
  • [Ensure physical activity is not used for or withheld as a punishment];
  • [Afford elementary students with recess according to the following:
    • At least 20 minutes a day;
    • Outdoors as weather and time permits;
    • Encourages moderate to vigorous physical activity; and
  • Scheduled to avoid extended periods of inactivity (i.e., periods of two or more hours)]. and/or
  • [Insert other district identified goals].

 

Goal 3 – Other School-Based Activities that Promote Student Wellness: Schools will support student, staff, and parents’ efforts to maintain a healthy lifestyle, as appropriate. The goal(s) for addressing other school-based activities that promote student wellness include the following [Select goals) from the list below]:

  • [Provide parents a list of foods and beverages that meet nutrition standards for classroom snacks and celebrations];
  • [Provide school staff a list of alternative ways to reward children. Foods and beverages will not be used as a reward, or withheld as punishment];
  • [Develop a plan to promote staff health and wellness];
  • [Engage students and parents, through taste-tests of new school meal items and surveys to identify new, healthful, and appealing food choices];
  • [Share information about the nutritional content of meals with parents and students];
  • [Support the consumption of breakfast at school by implementing alternative breakfast options to the extent possible (e.g., grab n’ go, breakfast in the classroom, breakfast after 1st period, etc.)];
  • [Permit students to bring and carry water bottles filled with water throughout the day];
  • [Make drinking water available where school meals are served during meal times];
  • [Encourage fundraising efforts held outside school hours to sell only non-food items, promote physical activity, or include foods and beverages that meet or exceed the Smart Snacks nutrition standards];
  • [Strive to provide students with at least 10 minutes to eat after sitting down for breakfast and 20 minutes after sitting down for lunch];
  • [Discourage students from sharing foods or beverages during meal or snack times, given concerns about allergies and dietary needs];
  • [Apply for USDA’s Healthier US School Challenge: Smarter Lunchroom Award, a certification initiative that recognizes schools for nutrition and physical activity excellence]; and/or

 

NOTE: School districts are required by federal law to have at least one specific wellness goal in each of the goal areas identified above. These goal areas include the following: nutrition promotion and education, physical activity, and other school-based activities that promote student wellness. Options have been provided, but districts must remember the sample policy and sample regulation cannot be adopted in the current format. School boards and administration must make a choice for all text in italicized brackets.