1. Welcoming Child Nutrition to the Student Achievement Planning Table
Phyllis Bramson-Paul, MPPA
Assistant Superintendent of Instruction and
Nutrition Services Division Director
California Department of Education
July 13, 2010
9:45-10:45 AM
ho version

2. Overview Achievement and Health Gap Connection
Why School Wellness Matters For All Students
Approach to Closing the Achievement Gap
What Child Nutrition Directors Can Do! 2 2

3. What is the Achievement Gap?
Disparity between:
White and other Ethnic groups
Socio-Economically Disadvantaged and Non-Disadvantaged 3

4. The Achievement Gap Facts
Who has the lowest academic performance?
Hispanic/Latino, African-American and low-income students
The achievement gap is nationwide!
The gap gets worse from 4th grade to graduation 4

5. Highlights of The Nation’s Report Card
National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 5

6. NAEP tell a consistent and widely cited story of the racial achievement gap6

7. Below Basic in Many States7

8. Low-income students achieve and attain less than high-income students8 8

9. Low-Income White Students Still Academically Outperform9

10. The Achievement and Health Gap
…strong connection! 10 10

11. Health & Achievement Gap It’s the Same Children!
Source: Office of Minority Health, CDC
Anemia: 2x Higher rates-African American & Hispanic compared to Caucasian
Poor Dental Health: 2-3x Higher rates
Asthma: 60% Higher rates
Childhood Obesity: 1.5 to 2 X Higher rates 11 11

12. A Physical Fitness Gap Exists Too
Fitness Assessment (Fitness Gram)
Measures 6 areas of physical fitness
Aerobic capacity, body mass, strength & flexibility
Hispanics/Latinos and African-American Students typically score lower 12

13. African Americans and Hispanics Score Lower on Aerobic Capacity
70%
58%
52%
53%
% California Students with a Healthy Aerobic Capacity 13
Reference:

14. African Americans and Hispanics Score Lower On Body Composition (more overweight)
78%
66%
63%1
% California Students with a Healthy Body Composition 14
Reference:

15. Why School Wellness Matters for All Students
….It Helps Close the Achievement Gap 15

16. School Wellness is a Culture Not a Program!
A healthy school environment:
Built through everyday actions of school life
Uniquely connected to effective learning
Supports the physical, mental, emotional and social well-being of the whole school
What’s Right for Kids 2 16 16 16

17. Investing in School Wellness…. High Rate of Return
Academic Resources
Increased readiness to learn
Better academic achievement
Staffing
Fewer visits to school nurse
Fewer behavior problems
Funds
As school wellness increases the ADA goes up 17

18. Coordinated School Health Approach Improves Academic Achievement
Evaluations from 20 different initiatives with CSH showed that 75% improved academic achievement
Improved attendance
Reduced discipline problems
Greater assignment completion
Increased contact with caring adults
Blank, MJ, Shah BP. Educators and Community Sharing Responsibility for Student Learning. INFO Brief, ASCD, January 2004, 36, 1-11. 18

19. Health Improves Learning
Poor nutrition decreases cognitive functioning and performance in the areas of language, concentration, and attention.
Students with the highest fitness scores have the highest SAT-9 scores. Jim Sallis
Wehler, Scott, & Anderson 19

20. Breakfast Improves Test Scores
Which schools have the highest API scores?
It’s those with students who had higher rates of eating breakfast. 20
Source: California Healthy Kids Survey & CDE’s API Research and STAR data files.

21. Health Improves Attendance and Behavior
Eating Breakfast linked to:
Improved classroom behavior
Decreased absenteeism and tardiness
Students with poor nutrition & physical fitness more likely to be absent and tardy
Very overweight students miss 4-6 times more school than normal weight kids
About 9 days a year 21 21 21

22. Health Impacts School Budget
Cost of Students being out one day a year:
A single-day absence costs the district between $9-$20 per day-unhealthy students miss more school
Reference: Action for Healthy Kids: The Learning Connection 2005,
Los Angeles
Unified
$15 million a year
Average Size District
$100,000 or more 22 22 22 22

23. Meal Participation Impacts School Budget
Most schools get 4% to 5% indirect added to the general fund from meal revenues 23

24. [Anonymous] District in California
Breakfast-Do the Math!
[Anonymous] District in California
56% of students who ate FRP school lunch did not eat school breakfast
$5.5 million in lost federal meal reimbursements
$220,000 in lost “indirect” funds 24
Source: CDE - Nutrition Services Division data for SY 24

25. What Child Nutrition Directors Can Do!25 25

26. Health! The Missing Link in School Reforms to Close the Achievement Gap
“Healthier Students are Better Learners”
Research Review from Columbia University March 2010
Breakfast –one of the seven health factors cited:
Recommendations: universal breakfast, breakfast in the classroom, eliminating competitive foods 26

27. 27 27

28. Steps to Getting Started
1. Start with your own program
Pleasant eating spaces
Appealing menus and presentation-market your program!
Engage students –survey those who eat and those who don’t
Turn cafeterias into classrooms
2. Extend yourself
Data Evaluation- link to nutrition needs for high-risk students
District Committees and District Plans
Wellness Committee- get it going and keep it going
Other Committees- Program improvement, achievement, site council, facilities planning, budget meetings-be part of all plans!
Board Presentation, Principal Lunch n’ Learns
PTA, Teacher’s meetings 28

29. Your Turn! Discuss in Small Groups One way you could:
support academic achievement through health and nutrition 29

30. A Good Resource
School Nutrition Association Report 30

31. Make Wellness a Culture In Your District and Your Schools!
Questions? Phyllis Bramson-Paul, MPPA 31 31