Start Date: February 2014

ID #: 71639

Principal Investigator: Michele Polacsek, PhD, MHS

Organization: University of New England

Funding Round: Round 8

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Little is known about school-based digital marketing and how to help schools comply with model policies given new competitive food standards. The specific aims of this study are to: 1) assess the different forms of digital food and beverage marketing that may occur in school settings; 2) assess whether school marketing environments in Portland, Maine, align with the federal regulations on competitive foods, before and after a school-year-long compliance support intervention; 3) assist Portland schools to update their school marketing policies so they align with new standards and remove marketing to comply with those standards; and 4) conduct an ongoing participatory evaluation of these technical assistance efforts. A longitudinal study design will be used to assess school marketing environments in one elementary school, one middle school, and one high school. Primary outcomes will include measures of: prevalence and types of school marketing, including digital marketing; school and/or district school food marketing practices and regulations; marketing removal options, including cost of marketing removal, resources needed, and barriers encountered; and level of satisfaction with the technical assistance provided.

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