| Monroe Local School District |
| Bylaws & Policies |
8510 - WELLNESS
As required by law, the Board of Education establishes the following wellness policy for the Monroe Local 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:
| A. | With regard to nutrition education, the District shall: |
| 1. | Nutrition education shall be included in the sequential, comprehensive Health curriculum in accordance with the curriculum standards and benchmarks established by the State. | ||
| 2. | 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. | ||
| 3. | Nutrition education standards and benchmarks shall be age-appropriate and culturally relevant. |
| B. | With regard to physical activity, the District shall: |
| 1. | Physical Education |
| a. | Planned instruction in physical education shall promote participation in physical activity outside the regular school day. | |||
| b. | The physical education curriculum shall provide sequential instruction related to the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to participate in lifelong, health-enhancing physical activity. | |||
| c. | Physical education classes shall provide students with opportunities to learn, practice, and be assessed on developmentally appropriate motor skills and social skills, as well as knowledge. | |||
| d. | Planned instruction in physical education shall teach cooperation, fair play, and responsible participation. | |||
| e. | Planned instruction in physical education shall meet the needs of all students, including those who are not athletically gifted. | |||
| f. | Planned instruction in physical education shall be presented in an environment free of embarrassment, humiliation, shaming, taunting, bullying or harassment of any kind. | |||
| g. | Planned instruction in physical education shall include cooperative as well as competitive games. | |||
| h. | Planned instruction in physical education shall take into account gender and cultural differences. |
| 2. | Physical Activity | ||
| Physical activity shall not be employed as a form of discipline or punishment. |
| C. | With regard to other school-based activities the District shall: |
| 1. | The schools shall provide at least twenty (20) minutes daily for students to eat. | ||
| 2. | The school shall provide attractive, clean environments in which the students eat. |
Furthermore, with the objectives of enhancing student health and well being, and reducing childhood obesity, the following guidelines are established:
| A. | 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 as well as to the fiscal management of the program. | |
| B. | 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). | |
| C. | 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 |
The Board designates the Superintendent as the individual 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 report on the District's compliance with this policy and the progress toward achieving the goals set forth herein when requested to do so by the Board.
42 U.S.C. 1751, Sec. 204
42 U.S.C. 1771
Adopted 6/26/06
Revised 2/27/12
© Neola 2005