Local School Wellness Policy Reference Sheet

OSPI CNS School Nutrition Programs Reference Sheets

OSPI CNS March 2019

Local School Wellness Policy

LEAs play a critical role in promoting wellness among students, staff, and families. To ensure

schools create a healthy environment for student health and learning, LEAs operating the

National School Lunch Program or other federal Child Nutrition Programs are required to

establish a local school wellness policy for all schools under its jurisdiction.

Requirements:

 Develop a current Wellness Policy. This policy must:

• Include specific goals for nutrition education, physical activity, nutrition

promotion, and other school-based activities to promote student wellness.

• State nutrition guidelines for all foods available on the school campus. These

guidelines must be consistent with federal regulations for school meal

nutrition and Smart Snacks in School standards.

• Only allow for food and beverage marketing that meet the Smart Snacks in

School nutrition standards.

 Designate one or more school official(s) that has the authority to ensure Wellness

Policy compliance at each school under its jurisdiction.

 Make the Local Wellness Policy available to the public, including an annual progress

report with any updates to and about the policy, encourage public comment and

input.

 Review and update the School Wellness Policy regularly.

 Invite stakeholders to participate in the development, review, updates, and

implementation of the Local Wellness Policy.

 Assess progress made in attaining goals and wellness policy compliance and

compare to model wellness policies every three years, share the results of this

assessment with the public.

OSPI CNS School Nutrition Programs Reference Sheets

OSPI CNS March 2019

References:

 Final Rule: Local School Wellness Policy

 Local School Wellness Policy

Resources:

 Washington State School Wellness Policy Best Practices

Acronym Reference

-CNS

-HHFKA

-LEA

-OSPI

-USDA

Child Nutrition Services

Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act

Local Education Agency

Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction

United States Department of Agriculture