How Your School Can Help Create a Healthier School Environment

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Approximately 17 percent of youth are overweight. Every day in the United States, 53 million people go to a school to work or to learn. As a result, schools are a powerful place to shape the health and well-being of students and staff by promoting healthy eating and physical activity. This is not just good for students' health alone. In addition, healthier eating patterns and participation have been linked to increased achievement, better behavior and higher attendance rates among students - all measures of accountability in most schools around the country.

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a partnership between the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation, is working to eliminate childhood obesity and to inspire all young people in the United States to develop lifelong, healthy habits. Our Healthy Schools Program supports schools' efforts to develop healthier school environments for students and staff. We help schools increase opportunities for students to exercise and play, increase healthier food options, and develop school employee wellness program.

We support schools by providing:

• Tools: Customized action plans, implementation kits, integration ideas, ways to create community buy-in, and access to our resource database
• Support: Phone and e-assistance, online tools, trainings, and newsletters
• Promising Practices: Success stories, best practices, and opportunities to collaborate with other schools
• National Recognition: Some schools will receive Alliance recognition online and in print

Becoming a member of the Alliance's Healthy Schools Program is free and easy. To register go to http://www.healthiergeneration.org/   or call 1-888-KID-HLTH.

Download more information to help you can encourage healthier schools in your district now. (PDF)

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