Prioritizing Health in State ESSA Plans and Report Cards to Support the Whole Child

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was signed into law on December 10, 2015, reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. ESSA created an opportunity to broaden accountability beyond traditional subjects, such as math, to potentially focus on health and wellness in schools. States could select health and wellness-related indicators, and identify strategies More

Food Environment Near Schools and Body weight-A Systematic Review of Associations by race/ethnicity, Gender, Grade, and Socio-Economic Factors

Previous research reported modest associations between food environments near schools and adiposity among children overall. The associations within sociodemographic subgroups have not been synthesized. This review assessed the evidence on the associations between food environments near schools and childhood obesity within different demographic and socio-economic subgroups. PubMed and Scopus databases were searched to identify studies More

2020 Rapid Health Impact Assessment on USDA Proposed Changes to School Nutrition Standards

More than 21.8 million school-age children receive free or reduced-price school lunch and 12.6 million children receive free or reduced-price breakfast each day. Since updated nutrition standards for school meals, snack foods, and beverages have been implemented following passage of the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, a growing body of evidence shows their effectiveness in More

Executive Summary: 2020 Rapid Health Impact Assessment on USDA Proposed Changes to School Nutrition Standards

More than 21.8 million school-age children receive free or reduced-price school lunch and 12.6 million children receive free or reduced-price breakfast each day. Since updated nutrition standards for school meals, snack foods, and beverages have been implemented following passage of the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, a growing body of evidence shows their effectiveness in More

Development and Validation of a Photo‐Evidence Tool to Examine Characteristics of Effective Drinking Water Access in Schools

Federal law requires water access in schools where meals are served. Schools report high rates of water accessibility in cafeterias, but observations indicate lower adherence. Although observation is costly, it permits a more detailed assessment of a water source to determine whether it provides effective access that encourages water consumption and thus, healthy hydration for More

AQWA: Assessing Quality of Water Access

More than half of school-age children are under-hydrated, and too many routinely drink sugary beverages, making it harder for their minds and bodies to work well. Drinking water in place of sugary drinks is an important public health strategy to help all children grow up at a healthy weight and to promote good oral health. By More

Farm-to-School Education Grants Reach Low-Income Children and Encourage Them to Learn About Fruits and Vegetables

For children from low-income families, school meals are a significant portion of daily caloric intake and hence an opportunity to address food insecurity. Many states have pursued legislation to institutionalize programs such as farm to school that aim to improve the quality of school meals and acceptance of healthy foods (fruits and vegetables) to address More

Digital Food and Beverage Marketing Environments in a National Sample of Middle Schools: Implications for Policy and Practice

One promising approach to influence nutrition behavior is to limit food and beverage marketing to children. Children are a lucrative market and schools may be an effective setting in which to intervene. Studies have shown that marketing in schools is prevalent but little is known about digital marketing to students in the school setting. Researchers More

Training High School Student “Citizen Scientists” to Document School Water Access: A Feasibility Study

Youth water consumption is inadequate. Increasing adolescent water consumption could support decreased dental caries and body mass index (BMI). Most schools are required to provide free, potable water. However, there is evidence that schools’ self-reported compliance data overestimate access to water in schools. We tested the feasibility of using student citizen scientists to collect high More

Examining differences in the implementation of school water-quality practices and water-access policies by school demographic characteristics

Ensuring safe, accessible drinking water in schools is a national health priority. The objective of this study was to identify whether there are differences in water quality, availability, and education- related practices in schools by demographic characteristics. In 2017–2018, we analyzed data from the 2014 School Health Policies and Practices Study (SHPPS), a nationally representative, More