SPS Promoting Health & Wellness
By: Katya Heredia
Goals
The primary goals of the School District of Springfield R-12's wellness program are to promote student health, reduce student overweight/obesity, facilitate student learning of lifelong healthy habits and increase student achievement.
Food
SPS School District of Springfield R-12 is eager to provide students with tasty food without so much sugar. The goal here is to reduce the student overweight/obesity population and give students a better and happier lifestyle. The School District of Springfield R-12 has a small but important list of fat limits that they go by to supply for the students. SPS has decided not to give students sweets with the exception of quarterly celebrations and reward ceremonies.
Fat limits:
- Total fat: ≤ 35% of calories
- Saturated fat: < 10% of calories
- Trans fat: zero grams
- ≤ 35% of weight from total sugars in foods (grams of sugar ÷ total weight of product in grams)
- Snack items: ≤ 200 calories
- Entree+ items: ≤ 350 calories
- Snack items: ≤ 200 mg
- Entrée+ items: ≤ 480 mg
After School Programs
- All school affiliated after-school programs must meet the USDA nutritional standards for Ala Carte snacks OR Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) guidelines if/when applicable.
- Non-school affiliated after-school programs are encouraged to follow the USDA nutritional standards for Ala Carte snacks.
Food Quality & Safety
Any food produced and given to students in school will comply with local regulatory guidelines from the Springfield Greene County Health Department and follow proper food safety procedures to ensure that high quality and safe food is being provided and served to students.
- Kitchen managers, Leads, and Range cooks must be Serv-Safe certified.
- Foods are kept out of the temperature danger zone; hot foods stay hot, and cold foods stay cold.
- Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) procedures are in place.
- Continuing education in-services are offered throughout the school year for nutrition services staff.
- School kitchens are health inspected two to three times per school year.
Physical Activity
The district's physical activity goal is to assist students in learning to value and enjoy physical activity as an ongoing part of a healthy lifestyle by ensuring that every student has the opportunity to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to perform a variety of physical activities, maintain physical fitness and regularly participate in physical activity. In order to achieve the physical activity goal, the district will implement a physical education program including timeline in order to meet minimum, intermediate and advanced levels of the physical education standards.
Family & Community Involvement
The district strives to engage families as partners in their children's education by supporting parental efforts to motivate and help their children with maintaining and improving their health, preventing disease and avoiding health-related risk behaviors. Furthermore, the wellness program shall make effective use of district and community resources and equitably serve the needs and interests of all students and staff, taking into consideration differences of gender, cultural norms, physical and cognitive abilities and fitness level.
Tobacco, Alcohol and Other Drugs (T.A.O.D) Abuse
T.A.O.D use prevention education will focus on all grades with particular emphasis on middle school and reinforcement in all later grades. Instructional activities will be participatory and developmentally appropriate. T.A.O.D use prevention education programs will be implemented in accordance with Board policy, relevant administrative procedures and law.