Bill Text: FL S1294 | 2010 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: School Wellness and Physical Education Policies [SPSC]

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2010-04-30 - Died in Committee on Education Pre-K - 12 [S1294 Detail]

Download: Florida-2010-S1294-Introduced.html

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Florida Senate - 2010                                    SB 1294 
 
By Senator Wilson 
33-00951-10                                           20101294__ 
1                        A bill to be entitled 
2         An act relating to school wellness and physical 
3         education policies; amending s. 1003.453, F.S.; 
4         revising each school district’s requirement for 
5         reviewing its wellness and physical education 
6         policies; providing specific guidelines for a school 
7         district’s wellness and physical education policies 
8         with regard to nutrition education, physical activity, 
9         school-based activities, and nutritional guidelines 
10         for food and beverages sold or served on campus; 
11         requiring the Department of Education to designate the 
12         superintendent of each school district as responsible 
13         for implementing and administering the wellness and 
14         physical education policies of the school district; 
15         prohibiting guidelines for reimbursable school meals 
16         from being less restrictive than certain federal 
17         regulations and guidelines; requiring that the 
18         superintendent report to the department on the school 
19         district’s compliance with the act; requiring that the 
20         superintendent appoint a district wellness committee 
21         to review the district’s wellness and physical 
22         education policies and make recommendations; providing 
23         an effective date. 
24 
25         WHEREAS, the Legislature recognizes that good nutrition and 
26  regular physical activity affect the health and well-being of 
27  students who attend public school in this state, and 
28         WHEREAS, research suggests that there is a positive 
29  correlation between a student’s health and well-being and his or 
30  her ability to learn, and 
31         WHEREAS, schools can play an important role in the 
32  developmental process by which students establish their health 
33  and nutrition habits by providing nutritious meals and snacks 
34  through school meal programs, by supporting the development of 
35  good eating habits, and by promoting increased physical activity 
36  both in and out of school, and 
37         WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that this effort to support 
38  students in developing healthy behaviors and habits with regard 
39  to eating and exercise cannot be accomplished by public schools 
40  alone, and 
41         WHEREAS, it is necessary for school staff, parents, and the 
42  public at large to be involved in a community-wide effort to 
43  promote, support, and model these healthy behaviors and habits, 
44  NOW, THEREFORE, 
45 
46  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
47 
48         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 1003.453, Florida 
49  Statutes, is amended, and subsections (5), (6), (7), (8), and 
50  (9) are added to that section, to read: 
51         1003.453 School wellness and physical education policies; 
52  nutrition guidelines.— 
53         (1) By September 1, 2010 2006, each school district shall 
54  submit to the Department of Education a copy of its school 
55  wellness policy as required by the Child Nutrition and WIC 
56  Reauthorization Act of 2004 and a copy of its physical education 
57  policy required under s. 1003.455. Each school district shall 
58  annually review its school wellness policy and physical 
59  education policy and provide a procedure for public input and 
60  revisions. In addition, each school district shall send an 
61  updated copy of its wellness policy and physical education 
62  policy to the department when a change or revision is made. 
63         (5) Each school district shall adopt the following wellness 
64  and physical education policies in an effort to enable students 
65  to establish good health and nutrition habits: 
66         (a) With regard to nutrition education, each school 
67  district shall: 
68         1. Include engaging nutrition education in the health 
69  curriculum that has developmentally appropriate activities that 
70  are integrated throughout the year. Instruction shall be 
71  sequential and standards-based and shall provide students with 
72  the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to lead healthy 
73  lives. 
74         2. Extend nutrition education beyond the classroom by 
75  engaging and involving the school’s food service staff and by 
76  using the school cafeteria as a “learning lab” that allows 
77  students to apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills taught in 
78  the classroom when making choices at mealtime. 
79         3. Extend nutrition education beyond the school by engaging 
80  and involving the students’ families and the community. 
81         4. Promote standards and benchmarks for nutrition education 
82  through a variety of media. 
83         5. Inform all staff of and provide appropriate training to 
84  selected staff in the best practices of nutrition education. 
85         (b) With regard to physical activity, each school district 
86  shall: 
87         1. Provide a physical education curriculum that is aligned 
88  with the state standards and the standards of the National 
89  Association for Sport and Physical Education, inclusive, and 
90  that is sequentially planned in order to teach the knowledge, 
91  skills, and attitudes necessary to live an active, healthy life. 
92         2. Provide 225 minutes of physical education per week for 
93  grades 6 through 8. 
94         3. For elementary schools, require a mandatory 15- to 30 
95  minute recess that consists of physical activity on the days 
96  students do not have physical education class. 
97         4. For students in grades 6 through 12, offer opportunities 
98  for extracurricular activities and intramural programs that 
99  emphasize physical activities. 
100         5. For students in kindergarten through grade 12, provide a 
101  curriculum that includes moderate to vigorous daily physical 
102  activity beyond the school day. 
103         6. Provide families with information to encourage and 
104  assist them in their efforts to incorporate physical activity 
105  into their children’s daily lives. 
106         7. Encourage the establishment of community and business 
107  partnerships that institute programs supporting physical 
108  activity. 
109         (c) With regard to other school-based activities, each 
110  school district shall: 
111         1. Assist each school in establishing a wellness committee 
112  to help coordinate physical activity, nutrition, and other 
113  aspects of student and staff wellness. The wellness committee 
114  may include parents, students, teachers, a school nurse, 
115  physical education teachers, health teachers, career service 
116  representatives, or members of the school administration. 
117         2. Provide on-site resources to assist staff in improving 
118  their own personal health and wellness and provide incentives, 
119  including, but not limited to, a decrease in insurance premiums, 
120  bonuses, and teacher recognitions to enable staff to be good 
121  role models for students in promoting student wellness. 
122         3. Communicate information to parents on nutrition, the 
123  benefits of physical activity, and specific information 
124  concerning their children’s health, including body mass index 
125  (BMI). 
126         4. Assist schools in offering healthy food and beverage 
127  options at fundraising activities and school-sponsored events 
128  and during field trips. 
129         5. Mandate that schools provide food or beverages that meet 
130  the recommended nutrition standards for purposes of snacks, 
131  celebrations, and rewards, and look for alternative methods of 
132  classroom make-up time and discipline other than those that deny 
133  students the opportunity to participate in recess or other 
134  physical activities. 
135         6. Assist schools in providing a period of at least 15 
136  minutes for students to eat breakfast and at least 20 minutes 
137  for students to eat lunch from the time the students receive 
138  their food. 
139         (d) With regard to nutrition guidelines for all foods 
140  available on campus during the school day, the school district 
141  shall: 
142         1. Provide to all students through the school’s food 
143  service department affordable access to the varied and 
144  nutritious foods that students need in order to be healthy and 
145  learn. 
146         2. Require that food and beverages sold or served to 
147  students meet the nutritional recommendations of the current 
148  Dietary Guidelines for Americans published by the United States 
149  Department of Agriculture and the Coalition for Healthy Kids. 
150         3. Require that all foods made available to students 
151  promote student health and well-being. 
152         4. Require that each school food service department prepare 
153  and distribute to staff, parents, and after-school program 
154  personnel a list of snack items that comply with the current 
155  Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 
156         (e) All foods and beverages served or sold in each school 
157  district must meet the following specific guidelines that must 
158  be applied campus-wide: 
159         1. Beverages: 
160         a. Must be single-serving size, excluding milk and water. 
161         b. May not be diet soda. 
162         c. May not contain caffeine. 
163         d. Must be listed in the school beverage guidelines 
164  provided by the American Beverage Association, excluding 
165  flavored milk, pending availability. 
166         2. Foods in snack machines must: 
167         a. Be limited to 250 calories per serving. 
168         b. Have a limited amount of fat, not to exceed 35 percent 
169  of the total calories, excluding nuts and seeds. 
170         c. Contain saturated fats at a level not exceeding 10 
171  percent of the total calories. 
172         d. Contain sugars at a level not exceeding 35 percent of 
173  the snack food’s weight, excluding fruits and vegetables. 
174         e. Contain no more than 250 mg of sodium per serving. 
175         f. Not contain any trans fats. 
176         3. Each school shall eliminate frying equipment from its 
177  kitchen. 
178 
179  Parents and school booster associations are encouraged to follow 
180  these guidelines. 
181         (6) The department shall designate the superintendent of 
182  each school district as the individual charged with operational 
183  responsibility for measuring and evaluating the school 
184  district’s progress in implementing the policies specified in 
185  subsection (5). The superintendent shall develop administrative 
186  procedures necessary to implement and administer the policies 
187  specified in subsection (5). 
188         (7) Guidelines for reimbursable school meals may not be 
189  less restrictive than regulations and guidelines issued by the 
190  United States Department of Agriculture. 
191         (8) Upon the request of the department, the superintendent 
192  of each school district shall report on the district’s 
193  compliance with the policies specified in subsection (5) and the 
194  progress made toward achieving the goals set forth in these 
195  policies. 
196         (9) The district school superintendent shall appoint a 
197  district wellness committee that consists of one or more 
198  representatives from the school board, the administration, the 
199  food service department, the parents, the students, and the 
200  public. The district wellness committee shall annually review 
201  the district’s wellness and physical education policies and 
202  provide the superintendent with any recommended changes to the 
203  policies specified in subsection (5). 
204         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.