• Reversing the burden of obesity, diabetes and asthma requires a long-term, well-coordinated approach to reach young people where they live, learn and play.  Schools have a big part to play in the health of our children.  Working with other public, voluntary, and private sector organizations, schools can play a critical role in reshaping social and physical environments and providing information, tools, and practical strategies to help students adopt healthy lifestyles.

• Steps works within the schools to help with their wellness policies and create programming for both school students and staff. 

Coordinated School Health

For our young people to succeed in school, they must learn to read, write and understand math. Perhaps less apparent, however is the fact that problems we often don't associate with students and their families such as poor nutrition, domestic violence, substance abuse, depression, and others, can adversely affect not only a child's health, but also his or her ability to learn.

A coordinated approach to school health improves children's health and their capacity to learn through the support of families, schools, and communities working together. At its very core, Coordinated School Health (CSH) is about keeping Minnesota students healthy over time, reinforcing positive healthy behaviors throughout the school day, and making it clear that good health and learning go hand in hand. CSH offers students the information and skills they will need to make good choices in life.

More specifically, a coordinated approach to school health can address up to eight different aspects of health and education. These include:

1. School Environment

To learn effectively, children must be in a school environment where they feel comfortable and supported. It is also important that parents and other adults working with young people have high expectations about learning and provide students with the support they need.

2. Health Education

School staff - teachers, nurses, administrators, counselors or psychologists can work together to develop an ongoing approach to help students build health-related knowledge and skills from kindergarten through 12th grade.

3. School Meals and Nutrition

Many students eat one or two meals a day at school. Thus, schools have a unique opportunity to offer more nutritious food, as well as develop coordinated educational activities to encourage students to make healthful eating and good nutrition a priority for life.

4. Physical Education

Schools can and should encourage students to lead a physically active lifestyle both in and out of school. One way to start is to emphasize the importance of regular exercise as a lifelong activity.

5. Health Services

Growing children require a regularly scheduled health "maintenance" program-including immunizations, dental checkups, physicals, eye exams, other types of screenings, and in certain instances, daily medication. With the help of health professionals, schools can encourage preventive services to enable students to take proactive measures to stay healthy and get more out of school.

6. Counseling, Psychological, Social Work, and Mental Health Services

Today, many students have the added stress of coping with emotional challenges stemming from problems such as parental divorce, alcoholism, abuse, and drug addiction. By offering counseling and instruction to students, as well as referrals to mental health professionals, schools can help parents take a big step toward making an even greater difference in a student's total performance.

7. Staff Wellness

Students aren't the only ones who need to stay in good health. Educators and school staff are important role models for students. Successful schools have healthy, highly motivated staff with low rates of employee absenteeism.

8. Parents/Caregivers/Community Partnerships

One of the biggest benefits of CSH can be a closer working relationship between parents/caregivers and schools. Working with parents, businesses, local health officials, and other community groups, schools can form powerful coalitions to address the health needs of students.

Steps to a HealthierMN addresses many of the aspects of Coordinated School Health.  Steps programming in the schools focuses on policy change to ensure that students have more opportunities for physical activity as well as more healthful choices in the cafeteria and in vending machines.  In addition, Steps programs educate both staff and students about physical activity and nutrition and provide staff wellness programming so staff can serve as role models for students.

Steps programs also address three of the six target health behaviors associated with the Coordinated School Health model – the promotion of physical fitness, the promotion of health enhancing dietary practices and the reduction and prevention of tobacco use.

For more information on the Coordinated School Health model, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Coordinated School Health Program.