Healthy Schools Campaign thanks the Chicago mayoral candidates who joined us for a nonpartisan educational forum to share their perspective on health and wellness in Chicago schools. We hope this background is helpful in providing context for that discussion.

Background: School Health and Student Achievement

Over the last 15 years, studies have consistently documented the powerful connection between health and academic achievement. Healthy, active and well-nourished students are more likely to attend school and be engaged and ready to learn, yet many students come to school with one or more health problems that compromise their readiness to learn. The health of our city’s students has a direct impact on academic performance, attendance, school dropout rates, school revenues and the ability to reach achievement goals.

In his report Healthier Students are Better Learners, Charles Basch of the Teachers College at Columbia University details the seven health disparities that disproportionately affect the educational opportunities and outcomes of minority youth: vision, asthma, teen pregnancy, aggression and violence, physical activity, breakfast, and inattention and hyperactivity. Unless these health disparities are addressed, efforts to close the educational achievement gap will be compromised.

Current Status of Health and Wellness in Chicago Schools

CPS has taken a number of steps to improve student health and wellness, particularly around healthy eating and physical activity. Milestones include:

  • Snack and beverage standards. In 2004, the district adopted health promoting nutrition standards for beverages and snacks available in vending machines, school stores and a la carte items sold in the cafeteria.
  • Breakfast. In 2008, CPS launched a program to increase breakfast participation through in-classroom universal breakfast. Currently 192 schools are participating in this program, providing breakfast to an additional 40,000 students per day since the program was first introduced. In Jan. 2011, the Board of Education voted to bring in-classroom universal breakfast to all elementary schools in the district.
  • New School Food Standards. Beginning in the 2010-11 school year, the district adopted new nutrition standards for its school meal program. These standards exceed the gold nutrition standards of the USDA’s HealthierUS School Challenge, increasing whole grains, fruits and vegetables. In addition, the district set standards for how and where food is grown, with a preference for regionally grown food, and adopted the Harvard School of Public Health’s breakfast recommendations, which ban donuts and breakfast pastries and greatly increase the amount of protein in breakfast.
  • Recess. CPS has been encouraging schools to reinstate recess by providing schools with access to funding to cover some of the costs associated with recess.
  • Go for the Gold. In 2010, CPS and HSC launched Go for the Gold, a district-wide initiative to challenge and support schools to adopt the health promoting standards of the USDA’s HealthierUS School Challenge. The HealthierUS School Challenge is a major element of First Lady Michelle Obama’s effort to address childhood obesity, and supports programming and policies that lead to healthy school environments. The program recognizes and rewards schools for meeting high standards in school food, nutrition education, physical activity, and physical education.
  • Environmental Action Plan. CPS adopted an environmental action plan with the goal of minimizing the district’s impact on the environment and teaching students to be environmental stewards. This plan includes strategies for transportation, air, energy, waste, land, water and environmental education. The plan contributes to healthy indoor air quality for students, an especially critical issue for the many students with asthma, and recognizes the important role that schools play in ensuring that the city’s environment is healthy for its residents.

For More Information

For more information on these issues, please contact:

Rochelle Davis, President and CEO
By email or at 312-419-1810

Guillermo Gomez, Vice President of Urban Affairs
By email or at 312-419-1810

To learn more about HSC, please visit www.healthyschoolscampaign.org.

Please note

Healthy Schools Campaign is a non-partisan not-for-profit organization. The candidates’ views and positions are theirs alone and do not reflect an endorsement by or the views of Healthy Schools Campaign. This information is provided for informational purposes only.