School Districts Come Together to Share Experiences, Strategies for Creating Healthier Learning Environments

In May 2023, the Public Health Institute’s Center for Wellness and Nutrition (CWN), in partnership with Valley Children’s Hospital and No Kid Hungry, hosted a convening at Valley Children’s Hospital in Madera, California that brought together representatives from various school districts to celebrate the accomplishments and engage in insightful discussions about the successes and challenges of the Schools for Healthy and Thriving Students Consortium, which began in 2019.

The primary goal of the Consortium was to provide support to participating school districts in Fresno and Madera counties in adopting evidence-based wellness practices, including local school wellness policies that incorporate the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) Framework. The WSCC framework, developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), serves as a comprehensive approach to addressing health in schools. Comprised of ten essential components, such as physical and nutrition education, nutrition environment, and services, the framework offers a holistic approach to promoting the overall wellbeing of students.

CWN led an engaging activity designed to highlight the successes and challenges encountered by the participating districts in updating their local school wellness policies. District representatives were provided the opportunity to connect, exchange promising practices, and learn from their collective experiences. The collaborative environment fostered a sense of innovation and cooperation as attendees worked together to enhance the development and implementation of their respective school wellness policies.

The convening served as a valuable platform for school districts to come together, celebrate their achievements, and address the obstacles they face in creating healthier learning environments. By sharing their knowledge and lessons learned, the participants left the event equipped with new strategies and ideas to advance their wellness initiatives.

PHI’s Center for Wellness and Nutrition has a diverse portfolio of nutrition, physical activity, obesity prevention and chronic disease prevention projects that reduce the risk of obesity by empowering communities to eat healthier foods, engage in physical activity and create safer environments that foster healthy choices. 

A version of this impact story first appeared in a Center for Wellness and Nutrition newsletter.