Local School Wellness Policies
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On June 30, 2004, the President signed the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004. One provision of this law requires that schools participating in federal school lunch programs shall establish a local school wellness policy by School Year 2006.
Components of a Local School Wellness Policy
The law requires that a local wellness policy be established by July 1, 2006 and that it include, at a minimum:
Nutrition Guidelines
For school lunches: Food offered shall meet or exceed all nutrition regulations under the Child Nutrition Act and the School Lunch Act.
Throughout the campus: Food shall be geared to promoting student health and reducing childhood obesity.
Nutrition Education
School districts should provide nutrition education that is appropriate for students' ages; reflects students' cultures; is integrated into subjects such as math and reading; and provides opportunities for students to practice skills and have fun.
School districts should also choose nutrition education curricula that are easy to teach and foster lifelong healthy eating.
Physical Activity
Schools shall provide opportunities for every student to develop the knowledge and skills for specific physical activities, to maintain physical fitness and to participate regularly in physical activity.
Schools will also teach students the short- and long-term benefits of a physically active and healthful lifestyle.
Community Involvement
- Parents, students, school food representatives, school administrators, school board, and the public shall be involved in developing the school wellness policy.
Goals and Measurement
The policy shall set goals for nutrition education, physical activity and other school-based activities designed to promote student wellness.
The policy should include a plan for measuring implementation, including designation of 1 or more people charged with day-to-day operational responsibility for making sure schools are in line with the policy.
This law means that school districts across the nation had to put policies in place by the summer of 2006. The Whole Grains Council urges everyone to contact his or her local school district and urge the inclusion of whole grains in both the nutrition guidelines and nutrition education components of the Local Wellness Policy. Manufacturers are urged to redouble their efforts to provide whole grain products that will appeal to kids, at prices schools can afford.
For more information about Local Wellness Policies and other USDA initiatives to support kids’ health, visit www.fns.usda.gov/tn/healthy-schools.html.
