An initiative to implement a pro-active Wellness Policy is now underway in the York Suburban School District.
Dan Henry (left) and Griffin Vinarski at the new vending machines offering healthier snacks for students in the back lobby of York Suburban High School.
Dr. Shelly Merkle, Assistant Superintendent for Administration who is coordinating the effort, said the three-year program allows the administration to take a stronger role in the district’s Wellness Policy created in 2006.
A task force has set these objectives for the 2012-13 school year:
* Create a framework for district wellness.
* Establish a committee of district membership.
* Create a wellness presence across the district.
* Research health and physical education curriculum.
A number of those objectives have already been instituted. They will be followed in the next two school years by expanded objectives.
The Wellness Policy takes into account state mandates on wellness in education, as well as national guidelines for foods served in the cafeterias and concerns expressed by the York Suburban Board of School Directors.
“Wellness means different things at a school,” Dr. Merkle said. “1) Fitness, through health and physical education classes; 2) Nutrition, ranging from cafeteria foods to teaching nutrition; 3) Social-Emotional issues, such as York Suburban’s anti-bullying program and guidance counseling; and, 4) Intellectual, what strategies are most effective when teaching students in all content areas.”
The familiar soda and snack machines in the back lobby of York Suburban High School have been replaced by “healthier choice vending machines,” Dr. Merkle noted. “We were sending a mixed message to the students. There was only healthy food in the cafeteria, but soft drinks and snacks were available in the vending machines.”
“We see more students choosing wellness,” she added.
The task force – made up of school personnel – is building upon wellness practices in grades kindergarten through twelfth that are already in place. That includes monitoring foods that parents may bring in to the school for special occasions.
Concern over highly publicized child obesity studies – and state-mandated body mass index (BMI tests) also play a part in the Wellness Initiative.
Students in many classes are taking fitness breaks – called “Brain Breaks” — to stand or move around their classrooms. “Statistics show that just standing alone increases oxygen to the brain by 30 percent,” Dr. Merkle said.
Teachers receive a Wellness Tip every Wednesday to remind them of the initiative.
The entire Wellness Initiative has been capsulated in a one phrase: BE YS WELL.
