MSU Extension Nutrition

When it comes to creating healthier schools, policy can be a quiet hero. While it may not always grab attention, a well-crafted wellness policy is one of the most powerful and lasting tools schools can use to support the health of both students and staff. With children spending much of their day at school and eating a large portion of their daily calories there, schools are uniquely positioned to promote healthy eating and physical activity in meaningful ways.

Since the 2006-2007 school year, school districts that participate in the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs are required to have a local wellness policy. The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines a local wellness policy as a “written document of official policies that guide a school district’s efforts to establish a school environment that promotes students’ health, well-being, and ability to learn by supporting healthy eating and physical activity.”

In addition to having a policy, districts are required to implement and review their local wellness policy at least every three years by their local wellness committee. This review, formally known as a “triennial assessment” helps show what’s working, where the policy can improve, and keeps the school on track with meeting requirements and goals. The overall purpose of the review is to make local school wellness policies more useful for creating and maintaining healthy school environments and to give key contributors and partners clear information about what the policies include and how they are put into action. School districts often face challenges in effectively meeting this requirement.

Research shows that school districts across the country face barriers to effectively completing and implementing local wellness policy work. Commonly cited challenges include limited capacity among school staff, support and accountability and low or limited priority for school wellness. During the height of the COVID-19 public health emergency, a nationwide waiver from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service offered school districts more flexibility in meeting their review deadlines. While this allowed districts to focus on the urgent need to provide meals for children, it may have contributed to a reduced prioritization of local wellness policy efforts.

In response to the growing need for stronger local wellness policy support, the Michigan Department of Education (MDE), in partnership with MSU Extension, was selected as one of 10 organizations nationwide to provide coaching, education and technical assistance to eligible school districts across Michigan. This effort is part of a 3-year USDA Team Nutrition grant program. To date, 20 school districts and 50 school buildings have been recruited and are receiving support from local MSU Extension Community Nutrition Instructors, funded through SNAP-Ed. The reach and impact of this work aims to influence thousands of students and school staff statewide. Viki Lorraine, school district consultant in the MDE Office of Health and Safety, contributes success of the work to leveraging local existing relationships. “Many MSU Extension Community Nutrition Instructors already have trusted relationships with schools in their communities. Those local connections are especially important in doing this work and have played an important role in helping schools develop and implement their local wellness policies.” 

Local Guidance Makes a Difference

Located in Michigan’s eastern Upper Peninsula, participating school district, Tahquamenon Area Schools has been matched with local MSU Extension Community Nutrition Instructor, Brianna Beaulieu. “Having Brianna come in was just like this shining star,” shared Stacy Price, Superintendent of Tahquamenon. Price expressed a challenge common to small, rural communities, staff often wear multiple hats which can sometimes present limitations in capacity. Beaulieu played a key role in helping to re-energize the local wellness committee by bringing in and inviting a diverse group of voices to inform the process as well as facilitating the use of an assessment tool while helping everyone stay on track. “The help from Brianna was invaluable. Our team was initially trying to make it more complicated than it needed to be and Brianna guided us through a more practical and feasible approach.” 

Beaulieu attributes her success in recruiting members of the local wellness committee to her membership of the larger community, having spent a significant amount of time in Newberry as a child and working adult. “My history with the community and living here allowed me to have connections. I was able to help recruit everyone personally.”

A Shared Commitment to Wellness

Community Nutrition Instructor, Julia Simon was paired with Bendle Public Schools in Burton, a suburb of Flint, Michigan. “Right off the bat, I could tell the district was invested and committed. I was able to jump in by participating in their monthly wellness meetings.” Over the last 10 months, Simon has built solid, trusted relationships with Bendle Public Schools by showing up and being present. Through the consistent work of the motivated wellness committee, and with guidance and resources from Simon, Bendle has completed a meaningful review of their policy and identified areas of improvement and future goals which they aim to put into action by January 2026. Goals include increasing frequency of physical education and length of recess time, starting a new employee wellness initiative, and strengthening their policy language in support of more locally grown food for their school meal programs. Bendle has also secured a grant from the Community Foundation of Greater Flint for $13,000 to support implementation of future changes. In addition to guiding the wellness policy process, Simon has taught 6-week hands-on nutrition education classes to 6th graders where students tried foods and learned about sugar in common beverages. 

Simon shared how having a strong wellness policy contributes to a common understanding of a school’s commitment to health. “Having a shared language in a written policy helps everyone from teachers, to food service directors and administrators be on the same page. Wellness policy work isn’t always easy. It takes time, effort, and consistent and open communication.  It requires everyone to show up so ideas can be exchanged, and collaboration can happen and ultimately help students be their healthiest.”

It's clear that school districts like Bendle aren't alone in finding meaning in this process. “This type of work is rewarding,” states Simon. “You get to see the progress over time—from the perspective of the school nurse, the food service director, and even in places like the school garden. It all connects, like a big web.”

MSU Extension partners with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to provide SNAP-Ed throughout Michigan. SNAP-Ed focuses on good nutrition, stretching food dollars, living physically active lifestyles and engaging partners to build healthier communities.

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