| The Orlando schools will be promoting health | | | | |
| and wellness to its students this year. As | | | | - Family and community. |
| part of the Orange County Schools, the | | | | |
| Orlando schools will implement a new wellness | | | | Under the belief that healthy children is a |
| policy that was just approved this month. | | | | community-wide concern, each of the Orlando |
| | | | schools will enlist the involvement of |
| The new policy is in response to a federal | | | | parents, families, teachers, counselors, |
| mandate, under the Child Nutrition and WIC | | | | school administrators, healthcare |
| Reauthorization Act of 2004. All schools that | | | | professionals, businesses, and community |
| receive federal funding for school lunch | | | | groups and organizations. |
| programs must have a wellness policy in | | | | |
| place. | | | | The Orange County schools already have |
| | | | experimented with the wellness program, which |
| The wellness program for the Orlando schools | | | | will benefit the Orlando schools. For almost |
| is designed to promote better health to their | | | | three years, the program has been used in 13 |
| students. Healthy eating and physical | | | | schools within the county. The HSTs have been |
| activity will play a big part in the Orlando | | | | found to be quite effective in promoting |
| schools' policy. The hope is to completely | | | | health and wellness, not only for the |
| change the Orlando schools' environments to | | | | students but their families and school staff, |
| healthier ones. | | | | as well. The Orlando schools will use much of |
| | | | the information and experiences from these |
| With the new wellness program effective on | | | | schools, when implementing their own wellness |
| the first day of school, each of the Orlando | | | | program this year. |
| schools is challenged to be creative and | | | | |
| innovative in implementing wellness | | | | The experimental HSTs have sponsored walking |
| activities and promotions. | | | | and running clubs for students, school staff, |
| | | | and parents. Another example of creative |
| Each of the Orlando schools will create a | | | | thinking by the HSTs is "wellness |
| Healthy School Team (HST). The organization | | | | Wednesdays", whereby students are rewarded |
| of each team is based on the Centers for | | | | for being involved in healthy activities, |
| Disease Control and Prevention's Coordinated | | | | such as eating nutritious lunches, drinking |
| School Health Model. There will be a member | | | | water versus soda, or participating in a |
| on each HST to represent each of the | | | | physical activity. Each HST at the Orlando |
| following areas of health: | | | | schools will be charged with developing |
| | | | activities that meet the specific needs of |
| - Health education, | | | | each school and its students. The HST members |
| | | | are limited only by their own imaginations to |
| - Counseling. | | | | develop creative promotions, events and |
| | | | activities. |
| - Psychological and social services, | | | | |
| | | | The new wellness program at the Orlando |
| - School health services, | | | | schools is all about health and wellness for |
| | | | children, and helping everyone concerned to |
| - Nutrition services, | | | | understand the importance of good health and |
| | | | its effect upon a child's ability to learn. |
| - Physical education, | | | | From the federal mandate to the Orlando |
| | | | schools' implementation of the wellness |
| - The healthy school environment, | | | | program, the sole purpose is to improve the |
| | | | health of students in order for them to be |
| - Health promotion for Orlando schools' | | | | better able to learn and achieve - now and in |
| staff, and | | | | the future. |