Monday, June 26, 2006
Contact: Jessica Robinson, 573-751-0290
Blunt Announces Joint Agency Effort to Promote Student Wellness
JEFFERSON CITY–Gov. Matt Blunt announced today that state agencies are collaborating to help local school districts develop and implement policies to promote better nutrition, fitness and health among Missouri schoolchildren. The joint effort is funded by a $64,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently awarded to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).
“The wellness choices our students make today will impact their health and quality of life well into the future,” Blunt said. “This collaborative effort to improve students’ health utilizes our agencies’ expertise to best provide resources for our local districts and students.”
The Department of Health and Senior Services and University of Missouri Extension are working with DESE staff this summer to kick off the project with six regional workshops for local school officials.
Beginning with the next school year (2006-07), all school districts are required by federal law to have a formal wellness policy that focuses on goals for nutrition education, physical fitness and other school-based activities designed to promote and protect students’ health.
Specifically, all schools that participate in the school lunch or breakfast programs must set nutrition guidelines for all foods that are available to students during the day on each school campus.
As part of the project, 10 school districts will be selected to receive $5,000 mini-grants to help them implement model policies and activities.
Regional training sessions have been held recently at Hannibal (June 6), St. Louis (June 15) and Kearney (June 22). Other sessions this summer are scheduled for:
- Sikeston June 27
- Jefferson City July 13
- Mount Vernon August 3
Additional training and assistance will be available to school districts during the coming school year. For more information, contact Karen Wooton, director of school food services for the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, (573)751-3526.
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