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Wellness Policy

 

If you would like to join our Wellness Committee, please contact the office at [email protected]

 

Torah Day School of Phoenix

Local Wellness Policy

Date Created:11/01/2014

Last Updated:09/09/2021

 

Wellness Policy Goals

Goal for Nutrition Promotion:

To encourage heathy eating and nutrition, TDSP will do the following things:

-Promote participation in school meals among our students and among our families.

-Host a trip to local farm

-We will implement at least 5 Smarter Lunchroom Techniques

 

Goal for Nutrition Education:

Torah Day School of Phoenix shall provide nutrition education that is age appropriate for all its students and that is integrated into health education or core curricula. The goal of this education is to influence students’ eating behaviors by providing them with the knowledge they need to make healthy choices when it comes to food.

  1. The Nutrition education is designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote and protect their health.
  2. Nutrition education should include enjoyable and developmentally appropriate participatory activities such as cooking demonstration, taste testing, and promotion of new items.
  3. We agree that once the campus has been renovated, we will investigate building a school garden.
  4. Lessons will promote fruits, vegetables, whole grain products, low fat and fat free dairy, and healthy food preparation methods.
  5. Lessons will emphasize caloric balance between food intake and energy expenditure.
  6. Media literacy with an emphasis on food and beverage marketing will be taught.
  7. Lessons will talk about the relationship between healthy eating and personal health and disease prevention.
  8. Lessons will discuss food guidance from MyPlate, and reading and using the nutrition fact labels
  9. Lessons will discuss eating a variety of foods everyday and balancing food intake and physical activity.

 

Goal for Physical Activity:

To promote physical activity among its students, Torah Day School of Phoenix will do the following things:

 
1.    Physical activity during the day (including but not limited to recess, classroom physical activity breaks, or physical education) will not be used or withheld as punishment for any reason.
2.    To the extent practicable, the district will ensure that its grounds and facilities are safe and that equipment is available for all students to be active.
3.    All TDSP students will receive 60-89 minutes of physical activity per week.
4.    The district will provide students with formal, age-appropriate physical education, consistent with national and state standards for physical education.
5.    Physical education program will promote student physical fitness through individualized fitness and activity assessments
6.    Students will be moderately to vigorously active for at least 50% of class time during most or all physical education class sessions.
7.    TDSP will offer at least 20 minutes of recess on all days during the school year.
8.    If recess is offered before lunch, proper hand washing measures will be in place.
9.    Recess will be offered outdoors when weather is feasible. Recess is a compliment not a substitute for physical education class.
10.    Recess monitors will encourage students to be active and will serve as role models by being physically active along with students when feasible.
11.    Teachers will serve as role models by being physically active alongside students whenever possible.
12.    Students will be offered periodic opportunities to be physically active or to stretch throughout the day on all or most days during a typical school week.
13.    The district will provide resources and links to resources, tools, and technology with ideas for classroom physical activity breaks.
14.    Teachers will incorporate movement and kinesthetic learning approaches into “core” subject instruction when possible, and will do their part to reduce sedentary behavior during the day.

 

Goal for Other School-Based Activities that Promote Student Wellness:

  1. All school-sponsored events will adhere to the wellness policy guidelines.
  2. All school-sponsored wellness events will include physical activity and healthy eating opportunities.
  3. TDSP will promote to parents/caregivers, families, and the general community the benefits of and approaches to healthy eating and physical activity throughout the school year.
  4. Families will be informed and invited to participate in school- sponsored activities and will receive information about health promotion efforts.
  5. TDSP will promotes staff member participation in health promotion programs.
  6. When feasible, the district will offer annual professional learning opportunities and resources for staff to increase knowledge and skills about promoting healthy behaviors in the classroom and schools

 

Nutrition Standards

School Meals

The school meal programs aim to improve the diet and health of school children, help mitigate childhood obesity, model healthy eating to support the development of lifelong healthy eating patterns and support healthy choices while accommodating cultural food preferences and special dietary needs.

  1. TDSP will participate in the National School Lunch Program.
  2. All meals will, at a minimum, meet the New Meal Pattern requirements.
  3. Free, potable water will be available to all students during meal periods and throughout the day.
  4. TDSP will participate in the School Breakfast Program and breakfast will be served in the classroom
  5. TDSP will participate in the Afterschool Care Snack Program every day.
  6. Meals will be accessible to all students
  7. Meals will be attractive and appealing to all students
  8. Meals will meet or exceed the current nutrition requirements established by local, state, and Federal statutes and regulations.
  9. Students will be allowed at least 10 minutes to eat breakfast
  10. Students will be allowed at least 20 minutes to eat lunch.
  11. TDSP will accommodate students with special dietary needs.
  12. Breakfast and lunch will be served at a reasonable and appropriate time of the day.
  13. Local and regional products will be incorporated into the school meals program.
  14. All foods served at Torah Day School of Phoenix should meet the highest Kosher standards, and be under Rabbinic supervision.               
  15. All meals served by Torah Day School of Phoenix shall meet USDA requirements for nutritious meals and comply with meal patterns and nutrition standards for school meals.
  16. Each meal served shall be Pareve (meat and dairy free) or dairy. Meat meals are not permitted on the campus for Kashrut (Kosher) reasons. We agree to review this policy if TDSP is able to have its own kitchen.
  17. Each lunch meal shall include fruits and vegetables, and at least one (a fruit or a vegetable) shall be fresh, preferably both.
  18. Each breakfast meal shall be served with either a fresh fruit or a fresh vegetable.
  19. All meals shall be served with milk. All milk shall be low fat or fat free.
  20. All milk served shall be unflavored.
  21. All grains served will be whole grains.
  22. The consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables will be encouraged among students and staff.
  23. Fresh fruits and vegetables and other healthy foods, like plain rice cakes will be available to students in the event that they are hungry in the latter portion of the day and have not brought a snack from home.
  24. Torah Day School of Phoenix shall not permit foods made with tree nuts to be served to students, to protect students with allergies to tree nuts.
  25. Torah Day School of Phoenix will monitor portion sizes and nutrition density to ensure that the meals meet federal requirements.
  26. Torah Day School of Phoenix will not permit the sale of food items that do not meet federal guidelines for health and nutrition.
  27. Foods of minimal nutritional value and soft drinks will not be permitted for sale in Torah Day School of Phoenix.

 

Policies for Competitive Food and Beverages

Any snacks sold or served by Torah Day School of Phoenix will comply with USDA’s “Smart Snacks” rules.

 

Competitive Foods and Beverages

Nutrition standards for competitive foods and beverages served outside the school meal programs must, at a minimum, meet the USDA’s Smart Snacks in Schools guidelines.

 

Celebrations and Rewards

Arizona Law (ARS 15-242) states that all food and beverages served to students in grades K-8 must meet the USDA’s Smart Snacks in Schools guidelines.

  1. Celebrations and parties- TDSP will provide a list of healthy party ideas to parents and teachers, including non-food celebration idea.
  2. Classroom snacks brought in by parents. TDSP will provide parents a list of foods and beverages that meet the Smart Snacks nutrition standards.
  3. Rewards and incentives- TDSP will provide teachers and other school staff with a list of alternative ways to reward students.
  4. Food should not be used as a reward

 

These guidelines apply to (check all that apply):

☒School-sponsored events

☒Celebrations and parties

☒Classroom snacks provided by parents

☒Classroom rewards and Incentives

 

Fundraising

  1. TDSP will not allow exempt fundraisers. All food and beverages sold as fundraisers will meet USDA’s Smart Snacks
  2. Fundraisers will include only non-food items and physical activity based fundraisers will be encouraged.
  3. Fundraising done outside of school hours will sell only non- food items or food and beverage that meet the USDA’s Smart Snacks in Schools standards.

 

Food and Beverage Marketing in Schools

 

In general, we do not allow food or beverage marketing at Torah Day School of Phoenix.

In the event that we do market food or beverages, any food or beverages advertised on the school campus during the school day will meet or exceed the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition guidelines.

 

These guidelines apply to (Check all that apply)

☒ Brand names, trademarks logos or tags, except when placed on a physically present food or beverage product or its container

☒ Displays such as on vending machine exteriors Corporate brand, logo, trademark, or name on school equipment such as marquees, message boards, scoreboards etc.

☒ Corporate brand, logo, trademark, or name on cups used for beverage dispensing, menu boards, coolers, trach cans, and other food service equipment, as well as on posters, book covers, school supplies displays etc.

☒ Advertisements in school publications or mailings

☒ Free product samples, taste tests, or coupons of a product or free samples displaying advertising of a product

 

School Wellness Committee

Committee Role and Membership

The District will convene a representative district wellness committee that meets to establish goals for and oversee school health and safety policies and programs, including development, implementation and periodic review and update of this district-level wellness policy. 

The meetings will take place twice a year.

Participation in the wellness committee is open but not limited to the following groups of people:

o              Parents/Caregivers

o              Students

o              Representative from School Nutrition Programs

o              Physical education teacher

o              Health education teacher

o              School health professionals (nurses)

o              Mental health and social services staff (counselors, psychologists, social workers)

o              Administrators

o              School board members

o              Health professionals (dietitians, doctors, nurses)

      The public is notified of their ability to participate in the LWP  process.

 

Leadership

The district has designated one or more LEA and/or school official(s) who have the authority and responsibility to ensure each school complies with the local wellness policy.

The designated official for oversight of implementation at each school is: Gaby Friedman

The designated official for convening the wellness committee is: Gaby Friedman

The person designated for informing the public about the wellness policy is: Alexis Heimer

 

Wellness Policy Implementation, Monitoring, Accountability and Community Engagement

 

Implementation of the Wellness Policy

 

Torah Day School of Phoenix will use the ADE’s Activity and Assessment tool to complete a school-level assessment. Coach Shmuel Ringel will conduct the assessment, and it will be done every year in April or May and be completed by May 30th.
Nechama Ungar will be in charge of the educational component of this wellness policy. She will coordinate the lesson plans and curriculum, and will do so every year by August 30.
Coach Shmuel Ringel will be in charge of the physical education aspects of this policy. (ongoing)
Jen Siegel has the responsibility of monitoring the Food and beverage aspects of this policy (ongoing).
Gaby Friedman will oversee the overall implementation of the items in this policy (ongoing)

 

Record Keeping

All documents related to the compliance with this Wellness Policy will be kept at 1118 W. Glendale Ave, Phoenix AZ 85021 in the upstairs office. The documentation will include,

A written copy of this policy

Documentation demonstrating that it has been made available to the public

Documentation of efforts to review and update the policy

Documentation to demonstrate compliance with the annual public notification requirements

Documentation demonstrating the most recent assessment of the school wellness policy, and documentation regarding how we made available the assessment to the public.

 

Annual Notification of Policy

TDSP will inform families and the public each year of basic information about the policy, including its content, updates, and implementation status.

TDSP will make this information available via its website.

This information will include how the public can be involved, and the name and contact information of the people leading the wellness committee.

 

Triennial Progress Assessments

At least once every three years, TDSP will  conduct an assessment of its wellness policy. To accomplish this, TDSP will evaluate compliance with their wellness policy and assess progress toward meeting the goals of the District Wellness policy. Additionally, USDA requires that TDSP will compare their policy to the Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s model wellness policy.

Alexis Heimer is responsible for managing the Triennial Assessment, [email protected]

We will notify households of the availability of the triennial progress report on our website.

 

Revisions and Updating the Policy

The District will update or modify the wellness policy as appropriate when:

TDSP priorities change

And/or

Community needs change

And/or

Wellness goals are met

And/or

New Health Science information emerges

And/or

New state or federal guidance/standards are issued.

 

Community Involvement, Outreach, and Communications

TDSP is committed to being responsible to community input.

TDSP will actively communicate ways in which representatives of the Wellness Committee and others can participate in the development, implementation, and periodic review and update of the policy through a variety of means.

TDSP will inform parents of

-Improvements to school meals standards

-How to apply for meal benefits

Updates to the policy

Annual and Triennial Goals and Assessments.

TDSP will use

Email

Notices on the website

Newsletters

To keep the public informed.

 

Communications will include culturally and linguistically appropriate language.


1. Community participation in this wellness policy

Torah Day School of Phoenix is committed to having all its stakeholders, including: staff members, teachers (including teachers of physical education), administrators, board members, parents, students, representatives of the school food authority, school health authorities. and community members to participate in the development, implementation, review, and update of this Local Wellness Policy. 

 

2. Periodic Evaluations

Torah Day School of Phoenix shall appoint a team of stakeholders, that will periodically review this wellness policy, and assess the extent to which:

 TDSP is in compliance with the policy

This policy compares to other model LWPs

Progress has been made in attaining the goals of this policy.

 

This team shall conduct this investigation by reviewing, among other things:

School menus

Lunch and breakfast procedures

The curriculum and implementation of physical education classes

The amount of time devoted daily and weekly to structured and unstructured physical education.

Adherence to the goals set forth in this policy.

 

This review will take place at a minimum of once per school year. Results of this review will be made available to the public by the means stated above in item six.

 

Adopted, September 9, 2021
By
Rabbi Shmuel Field, Head of School
Gaby Friedman, Vice President, Board of Directors, Administrator
Jenn Siegel, School Meals Coordinator
Nechama Ungar, Parent, Kindergarten Teacher, 
Carol Bell, Assistant Preschool Director,
Shmuel Ringel, Coach, Physical Education Teacher
Robin Lucas, Community Member

 

 

If you would like to join our Wellness Committee, please contact the office at [email protected]

 

Click the link below for a copy of our Wellness Policy Assessment