Gracepointe Academy recognizes that good nutrition and regular physical activity affect the health and well-being of all students. Furthermore, research suggests that there is a positive correlation between a student’s health and well-being and his/her ability to learn. Moreover, schools can play an important role in the developmental process by which students establish their health and nutrition habits by providing nutritious meals and snacks through the schools’ meal programs, supporting the development of good eating habits, and promoting increased physical activity both in and out of school.
Gracepointe Academy is committed to creating school environments that promote and protect the overall well-being of all students and staff. The guidelines listed below encourage a comprehensive wellness approach that is sensitive to both individual and community needs.
1) Local School Wellness Policy Leadership
Gracepointe Academy will establish an ongoing Healthy School Team that will meet annually to ensure compliance and to facilitate the implementation of Gracepointe Academy’s wellness policy.
Gracepointe Academy will review and consider evidence-based strategies and techniques in establishing goals for nutrition promotion and education, physical activity and other school-based activities that promote student wellness to include, at a minimum, a review of Smarter Lunchroom tools and techniques.
2) Nutrition Promotion
Nutrition promotion can positively influence lifelong eating behaviors by creating food environments that encourage healthy choices and encourage participation in the school meal programs.
At a minimum, Gracepointe Academy will strive to meet the following Nutritional Promotion goals:
3) Nutrition Education
Academic performance and quality of life issues are affected by the choice and availability of nutritious foods in our schools. Healthy foods support student physical growth, brain development, resistance to disease, emotional stability, and ability to learn.
4) Physical Activity
Gracepointe Academy shall ensure that physical activity is an essential element of each school’s instructional program. The program shall provide the opportunity for all students to develop the skills, knowledge, and attitudes necessary to participate in a lifetime of physical activity.
5) Other School-Based Activities
Gracepointe Academy will integrate wellness activities across the entire school setting. These initiatives will include nutrition, physical activity, and other wellness components so that all efforts work towards the same set of goals and objectives used to promote student well-being, optimal development, and strong educational outcomes.
General Guidelines
Eating Environment
Use of School Facilities Outside of School Hours
Behavior Management
6) Guidelines for All Foods and Beverages Available During the School Day
Gracepointe Academy shall operate and provide food service in accordance with USDA’s National School Lunch Program (NSLP) standards and applicable laws and regulations of the state of Florida. The guidelines for reimbursable school meals shall not be less restrictive than regulations and guidance issued by USDA.
General Guidelines
Competitive Foods
General nutrition requirements for competitive foods:
Standards for food and beverages available during the school day that are not sold to students:
Fundraising
7) Policy for Food and Beverage Marketing
School-based marketing will be consistent with policies for nutrition education and health promotion. As such, the following guidelines apply:
8) Evaluation and Measurement of the Implementation of the Wellness Policy
Gracepointe Academy wellness committee will update and make modifications to the wellness policy based on the results of the annual review and triennial assessments and/or as local priorities change, community needs change, wellness goals are met, new health information and technology emerges and new federal or state guidance or standards are issued. The wellness policy will be assessed as indicated at least every three years following the triennial assessment.
Triennial Progress Assessments
Gracepointe Academy will assess the wellness policy to measure wellness policy compliance at least once every three years. This assessment will measure the implementation of the local school wellness policy, and include:
9) Informing the Public
Gracepointe Academy will ensure that the wellness policy and most recent triennial assessment are always available to the public. Gracepointe Academy will also actively notify households on an annual basis about any updates made to the wellness policy and the availability of the triennial assessment results, as well as provide information to the community about the school nutrition environment.
10) Community Involvement
Gracepointe Academy is committed to being responsive to community input, which begins with awareness of the wellness policy. Gracepointe Academy will actively communicate ways in which parents, students, representatives of the school food authority, teachers of physical education, the school board, school administrators can participate in the development, implementation, and annual review of the local school wellness policy through a variety of means, including: