Yucca Elementary School District #13 Local Wellness Policy Date Updated Jul 8, 2024 Date Adopted October 15, 2024 Wellness Policy Goals Goal for Nutrition Promotion: Yucca Elementary School is committed to providing a school environment that promotes and protects children’s health, well-being, and ability to learn by supporting healthy eating and physical activity. Yucca Elementary School will provide nutrition information and physical education opportunities that foster lifelong habits of healthy eating and physical fitness. Good health fosters student attendance and education. Children need access to healthful foods and opportunities to be physically active to grow, learn, and thrive. A healthy diet should be consistent with the five main recommendations from the Food Guide Pyramid. Participation of the entire school community is essential to the development and implementation of successful school wellness policies. Goals for Nutrition Education: Nutrition and healthy living skills shall be taught as part of the regular instructional program. Opportunities will be provided for all students to understand and practice the concepts and skills related to good nutrition, health promotion and disease prevention. Yucca Elementary School will provide a consistent message of nutrition and wellness. This will be accomplished through the use of multimedia: videos, morning announcements, school newsletter, websites, etc. Promote fruits, vegetables, whole grain products, low fat dairy products, healthy food preparation methods, and health enhancing nutrition practices. Nutrition education will be integrated into other areas of the curriculum such as math, science, language arts, and history to make it exciting for the children. The “My Plate” program is used every year as a training tool to build and promote healthy eating habits. Promote healthy hydration and the importance of water. A water bottle filling station is in the cafeteria available to all students. Food and beverages served at the school shall meet the nutrition standard set forth by the Arizona Department of Education. Yucca Elementary School will provide parents/guardians with information regarding healthy food/beverages. Teachers will be encouraged to use non-food items as rewards. Goals for Physical Activity: Yucca Elementary School will provide every student with the skills to maintain physical fitness and regularly participate in physical activities. Each student will be given skills to understand the benefits of a healthy lifestyle in which physical activity is a key component. Students in Kindergarten through 8th grade shall participate in daily physical activity that enables them to achieve and maintain a high level of personal fitness. The school shall provide two daily supervised recess periods for 6th-8th grade. In grades K-5th, the students are provided three supervised recesses. Recesses are preferably held outdoors, depending on the weather and heat. Students are encouraged to do moderate to vigorous physical activity. The school will provide a physical and social environment that encourages safe and enjoyable activities for all students, including those that are not athletically gifted. The school will ensure that all recreational amenities are safe, clean, and accessible to all students. Goals for Other School Based Activities that Promote Student Wellness: The School will provide a clean pleasant eating environment and students will be given adequate time to eat breakfast and lunch. Students are given ample time to enjoy eating their healthy meals, relax and socialize with friends. The teachers will be encouraged to use non-food items or healthy snacks as a reward in the classroom. Food Safety will be a key part of the School Nutrition operation. Students are encouraged to wash their hands frequently. Nutrition Standards School Meals The school meal programs aim to improve the diet and health of school children, help mitigate childhood obesity, model healthy eating to support the development of lifelong healthy eating patterns and support healthy choices while accommodating cultural food preferences and special dietary needs. Yucca Elementary School will participate in the National School Lunch Program. We are on Community Eligibility Provision, therefore all meals for breakfast and lunch are provided to the children, free of charge. All meals will, at a minimum, meet the New Meal Pattern requirements. Free potable water will be available to all students during meal periods and throughout the day. Competitive Foods and Beverages Nutrition standards for competitive foods and beverages must, at a minimum, meet the USDA’s Smart Snacks in Schools guidelines. These guidelines apply to all foods sold in the following locations. Yucca Elementary School does not have any food or beverage items for sale. Celebrations and Rewards Arizona Law (ARS 15-242) states that all food and beverages served to students in grades K-8 must meet the USDA’s Smart Snacks in Schools Guidelines. Food and Beverage Marketing in Schools Food and beverage marketing is defined as advertising and other promotions in schools. Food and beverage marketing often include an oral, written, or graphic statement made for the purpose of promoting the sale of a food or beverage product made by the producer, manufacturer, seller or any other entity with a commercial interest in the product. All products marketed on the school campus must, at a minimum, meet the Smart Snack guidelines. National School Lunch Program meals are made in our school kitchen by dedicated staff. Menus are posted on our school website and sent home weekly with the students. Menu meets all NSLP guidelines. III. School Wellness Committee Committee Role and membership The school will convene a wellness committee annually that meets to establish goals for and oversee school health and safety policies and programs, including development, implementation and periodic review and update of this district-wide wellness policy. Description of who the LEA permits to participate in the wellness policy process. Committee members may include, but not limited to, parents, students, teachers, paraprofessionals, school board members, and school administration. We do not have a nurse at our school. The public will be notified two times throughout the year that their participation is permitted on the LWP committee. Parents will be notified to any changes to the Local Wellness Policy through a letter mailed to each household. Leadership The district has designated one or more LEA and/or school official(s) who have the authority and responsibility to ensure each school complies with the local wellness policy. The designated official for oversight of implementation at each school is: Head Teacher/Administrator Debbie Vincent. The designated official for convening the wellness committee is: Business Manager Renee Macomb or Head Teacher/Administrator Debbie Vincent. The person designated for informing the public about the wellness policy is: Business Manager Renee Macomb. IV. Wellness Policy Implementation, Monitoring, Accountability and Community Engagement Implementation of the Wellness Policy Wellness committee will meet annually to review policy and make any changes needed. Triennial Progress Assessments At least once every three years, the LEA must assess their wellness policy. To accomplish this, the school will evaluate compliance with their wellness policy and assess progress toward meeting the goals of the Wellness Policy. The school will assess how their wellness policy compares to model wellness policies. Revisions and Updating the Policy The school will update or modify the wellness policy as appropriate. LEA will update or modify the wellness policy annually unless needed sooner. Notification of Wellness Policy Meeting The District will inform families and the public each year of any updates to the wellness policy and every three years their compliance with the written wellness policy. The school will inform families and the public each year of any updates to the wellness policy and any committee meetings via the school website. In accordance with federal civil rights lea and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity. Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information )e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA's TARGET Center at (202)720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800)877-8339. To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/USDA-OASCR%20P-Complaint-Form-0508-0002-508-11-28-17Fax2Mail.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866)632-9992. Or by writing a letter addressed to the USDA. The letter must contain the complainant's name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by: Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 Fax: (202)690-7442 or Email: program.intake@usda.gov This institution is an equal opportunity provider.