The federal school nutrition programs are the keystones to the diets of millions of American children. Schools have the opportunity to support healthy nutrition habits early in life by creating environments that encourage the consumption of healthy foods and beverages. This paper provides resources which offer general information about the…

Samuels & Associates, a research and evaluation firm based in Oakland, California, organized the National Evaluation and Measurement Meeting on School Nutrition and Physical Activity Policies, held on May 6 and 7, 2004 in San Francisco. The purpose of the meeting was to develop consensus regarding measures and tools to evaluate school-based…

An estimated 12.5 million American children and teens are obese. Over time, the diseases and disabilities associated with obesity may undermine this population's health and result in substantial social and economic costs. Policies that address children's nutrition and physical activity are an important tool in reversing the obesity epidemic. More…

From 2009 to 2010, the Community Food Security Coalition advocated for more federal support and funding for farm-to-school programs as Congress considered reauthorizing the Child Nutrition Act. Farm-to-school initiatives aim to improve the quality and healthfulness of student meals through the inclusion of more fresh fruits and vegetables provided…

Nearly 17 percent of children and adolescents are obese, but early interventions in nutrition and physical activity can prevent that number from increasing. This snapshot explores how schools can enact policies to help students develop healthy habits early in life. The following topics are briefly discussed: (1) Why Target Schools?; (2) Early…

In the past 30 years, the prevalence of obesity in children has increased to epidemic proportions. The obesity rate among children ages 2 to 5 has more than doubled (from 5 percent to 10.4 percent); more than quadrupled (from 4.2 to 17 percent) among children ages 6 to 11; and more than tripled among adolescents ages 12 to 19 (from 4.6 to 17.6…

Healthy students perform better. Poor nutrition and inadequate physical activity can affect not only academic achievement, but also other factors such as absenteeism, classroom behavior, ability to concentrate, self-esteem, cognitive performance, and test scores. This toolkit provides information to help make schools the model for healthier…

The number of overweight and obese children and adolescents has reached epidemic proportions, and recent federal surveys show that most school meals do not meet federal nutrition guidelines. Accordingly, there is growing interest in the nutritional quality of foods available in U.S. schools--and in the role of the government in helping to make…

This report provides updated results from one of the most comprehensive studies of health-related policies and practices in U.S. public middle and high schools to date, which was released in August 2011. The major findings and trends presented in this report describe issues relevant to childhood obesity for four school years, from 2006-07 to…

The Sustainable Food Center, which promotes healthy food choices, partnered with six middle schools in Austin, Texas, to implement Sprouting Healthy Kids. The pilot project was designed to increase children's knowledge of the food system, their consumption of fruits and vegetables and their access to local farm produce. Most students at these…

Youth rarely receive opportunities to craft their own strategies around health and wellness within contexts relevant to them. From 2009 to 2010, the Institute of Play, based in New York, developed Being Me, a social networking site, to enable sixth-graders at the Quest to Learn public school to explore, discover and document a range of ideas…

The Healthy Schools Program provides technical assistance to help schools engage administrators, teachers, parents and vendors in increasing access to physical activity and healthier foods for students and staff. Current grants run to September 2013. The program addresses two policy priorities of the Childhood Obesity team: (1) Ensure that all…

This document provides resources for increasing physical activity and physical education in schools. It also offers case studies that examine two successful initiatives, one led by an elementary school principal in Washington, D.C., and the other by school leaders in Naperville, Illinois.

This brief report updates data published in August 2010 from the most comprehensive, ongoing nationwide analysis of written wellness policies. It includes data from the 2006-07 through the 2010-11 school years, which were the first five years following the required implementation date for wellness policies. The major findings and trends presented…

As awareness of the childhood obesity crisis spreads, schools across the country are recognizing the importance of providing higher-quality, more nutritious food, and of re-integrating physical activity back into students' daily routines. With disparate amounts of resources to accomplish this, some schools may be finding it easier than others to…