At School

LiveWell Recognizes Top Winners with Healthy Schools Award

LiveWell Greenville was proud to honor sixteen schools in Greenville County as LiveWell Healthy Schools. These schools completed the application process and were awarded $250 to help further their wellness activities at the recent Safe and Healthy Schools Celebration breakfast. And, congratulations to the following four schools who received an additional $1000 for their great strides in making their school a healthy environment.

Congratulations to Bethel Elementary! In order to create a smooth transition to the new Culinary Creations menu, Bethel adopted the school-wide of “Recipe for Success”. And what a success this year has been! You can see healthy choices in the cafeteria, in classrooms as faculty include activity to their daily schedules, in fundraisers that support resurfacing their outside track, and at staff get-togethers where ‘walking’ is the social event.

Congratulations to Hughes Academy! Without the benefit of Culinary Creations to jumpstart their healthy efforts, Hughes Academy began on its own. They created a diversified wellness team that includes faculty, staff, parents and students. They have replaced candy-rewards for good behavior with reward-time spent outside allowing the students to be active. And plans are currently in place to change procedures in the cafeteria promoting healthier food choices.

Congratulations to Legacy Charter School! Legacy was founded on the principle that active students learn better. As such, the school has strong policies to promote physical activity and healthy eating which are applied across the board, to students, parents, faculty and staff. Legacy also makes a strong connection between the school and the surrounding community by offering healthy workshops and access to their incredible fitness facility.

Congratulations to Sterling School! Sterling has the unique situation of housing a middle school within an elementary school environment. The school leaders were early adopters of the Culinary Creations menu and eagerly applied it to both student populations There momentum continues as they include healthy celebrations and promote school activities on the nearby Swamp Rabbit Trail.

Our Goals

• Fresh, healthy food served in cafeterias
• Less unhealthy food available at school
• Kids more physically active during the school day

The Challenge

Schools face numerous pressures that make healthy choices challenging.

• School food service in public schools depends on low federal reimbursement rates, often nutritionally poor USDA commodities, and cafeteria employees that are not trained in scratch cooking
• Unprecedented budget cuts mean that teachers and PTAs must find creative and easy ways to raise money for things previously funded by our state
• Instructional time in the classroom is critical to meet state and federal standards

How will schools help children LiveWell?

• At least 25% of foods served in schools will be locally grown

Greenville County Schools’ Food and Nutrition Services recently stated in its procurement policy that it prefers locally sourced foods. This school year, it also switched to all whole grain breads and rices. And it’s developing a program through which cafeteria employees can be trained to make the transition from using box cutters to using paring knives, bringing more scratch cooking to the cafeteria.

Partners: Greenville County Schools Food and Nutrition Services, Greenville Technical College Culinary Institute, Marvin’s Produce, local farmers

• Support and reward schools and PTAs in choosing healthy fundraisers and rewards

Many schools have made the switch, switching used toy sales for bake sales or replacing junk food sales with walkathons. And they’ve found that these fundraisers are not only healthier, but are also far more profitable. LiveWell Greenville is working to identify healthy ideas that work in Greenville County Schools and PTAs to create a learning network so schools can make the switch to healthier more lucrative fundraising. In the 2011-12 school year, LiveWell Greenville aims to offer support and incentives to schools who “make the switch.”

Partners: Greenville County Schools, District I PTA, Furman University

• Provide tools to teachers to encourage physical activity during learning and throughout the day

The average elementary school classroom in Greenville County offers 8,000 minutes of physical activity and education per year. But some teachers are finding ways to get their students much more physically active, moving 12,000, 24,000, even nearly 45,000 minutes! During the 2010-11 school year, LiveWell Greenville is supporting Greenville County Schools to learn what these creative teachers are doing to integrate activity in the day. And in the 2011-12 school year, LiveWell Greenville plans to support schools with lower minutes with resources they may need to boost activity.

Partners: Greenville County Schools, Furman University