St. Matthew Catholic Elementary strives to educate the whole person in mind, body and soul. In educating students about the body, they strive to develop a profound reverence for the greatest gift of life, their own lives and the lives of others, along with readiness to spend themselves in serving all that preserves and enhances life.
The school, overseen by the St. Matthew Catholic Elementary Board of Education, strives to maintain a learning and working environment that promotes and protects children’s health, well-being and ability to learn by supporting healthy eating and physical activity.
Archdiocesan Board of Education Policy #6145
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary supports and promotes proper dietary habits contributing to students’ health status and academic performance. Foods available on school grounds and at school-sponsored activities during the instructional day should meet or exceed St. Matthew Schools nutritional standards. Foods should be served with consideration and nutritional integrity, variety, appeal, taste, safety and packaging to ensure high-quality meals.
The School Improvement Advisory Committee (SIAC) has developed a plan to implement and measure the wellness policy and monitor the effectiveness of the policy. This committee will report annually to the St. Matthew Board of Education regarding the effectiveness of this policy.
Specific Wellness Goals:
NUTRITION EDUCATION AND PROMOTION
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary School will provide nutrition education and engage in nutrition promotion that:
NUTRITION GUIDELINES FOR ALL FOODS AVAILABLE ON CAMPUS
General Directives
Food Safety
All foods made available on campus will follow food safety and security guidelines and comply with the state and local food safety and sanitation regulations. Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plans and guidelines will continue to be implemented to prevent food illness in schools. For the safety and security of food and facility, access to the food service operations should be limited to food service staff and authorized personnel.
Sharing of Food
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary discourages students from sharing their foods or beverages with one another during meal or snack times, given concerns about allergies and other restrictions on some children’s diets.
Food Service Department
The St. Matthew Catholic Elementary Food Service Department will:
Qualifications of Food Service Staff
Qualified nutritional professionals will administer the meal programs. As part of the St. Matthew Catholic Schools’ responsibility to operate a food service program, St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will:
School Meals
Meals served through the National School Lunch Program will:
Breakfast
To ensure that all students have breakfast either at home or at school in order to meet their nutritional needs and enhance their ability to learn, St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will:
Free and Reduced-Priced Meals Program
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will continue to make every effort in eliminating any social stigma attached to, and in preventing the overt identification of, students who are eligibile for free and reduced-priced meals. Towards this end, St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will:
Meal Times and Scheduling
St. Matthew will:
Beverage and Food
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will follow The Smart Snacks in School Standards published by the USDA, building on the healthy advancements by ensuring that snack foods and beverages sold to the students, in addition to those foods provided through the National School Lunch Program are also tasty and nutritious. Any food or beverage sold during the school day must meet the nutrition standards. As defined by the USDA, the school day is any time before the first bell until 30 minutes after the last bell.
Beverage Nutrition Standards
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary may sell:
Elementary schools may sell up to 8-ounce portions, while middle schools and high schools may sell up to 12-ounce portions of milk and juice. There is no portion size for plain water.
Food Nutrition Standards
General Standard for Competitive Food must meet all the proposed competitive food nutrient standards and
Exemptions to the Standard
Grain items
Acceptable grain items must include 50% or more whole grains by weight, or have whole grains as the first ingredient.
Total Fats
Acceptable food items must have <35% calories from total fat as served
Exemptions to the standard:
Saturated Fats
Acceptable food items must have <10% calories from saturated fat as served
Exemptions to the standard:
Trans Fats
Zero grams of trans fat as served (<0.5 g per portion).
Sugar
Accompaniments
Use of accompaniments is limited when competitive food is sold to students in school. The accompaniment must be included in the nutrient profile as part of the food item served and meet all proposed standards.
Caffeine
Foods and beverages must be caffeine-free with the exception of trace amounts of naturally occurring caffeine substances.
Special Event Snacks
Snacks
Snacks served during the school day should make a positive contribution to children’s diets and health, with an emphasis on serving fruits and vegetables as the primary snacks and healthy beverages conforming to this policy. Schools will assess if and when to offer snacks based on timing of meals, children’s nutritional needs, children’s ages and other considerations. Daily classroom snack is provided by families, per the recommended snack list. A list of healthful snack items in the Snack Policy is posted on the school website.
Snacks brought to school should have (per serving):
Rewards
Schools are encouraged to offer nonfood forms of rewards. If food or beverage rewards are used for academic performance or good behavior, they should conform to this policy. Schools will not withhold beverages or food (including food served through meals) as a punishment.
Celebrations
Schools will evaluate their celebration practices that involve beverage or food during the school day. The food used in celebration practices should make a positive contribution to children’s diets and health with some exceptions.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
Wellness education is an important and integral part of the education of students at St. Matthew Catholic Elementary.
Physical Education
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will provide wellness education that:
Physical Activity Opportunities After School
To provide opportunities for physical activity outside the regular physical education classes, the school is encouraged to:
Physical Activity and Punishment
Employees will not use physical activity (e.g., running laps, pushups) or routinely withhold opportunities for physical activity (e.g. recess, physical education) as punishment. Physical activity may be used as an accommodation for students demonstrating a specific need for activity.
Daily Recess
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will offer recess for students that are preferably outdoors (criteria should be established for when indoor recess occurs). Recess should encourage moderate to vigorous physical activity verbally and through the provision of space and equipment.
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will discourage extended periods (i.e. periods of two or more hours) of inactivity. When activities, such as mandatory school-wide testing, make it necessary for students to remain indoors for long periods of time, schools will give students periodic breaks during which they are encouraged to stand and be moderately active.
Integrating Physical Activity into Classroom Settings
For students to receive the nationally recommended amount of daily physical activity and for students to fully embrace regular physical activity as a personal behavior, students need opportunities for physical activity beyond the physical education class. Toward that end, St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will:
IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION
Communication with Parents
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will support parents’ efforts to provide a healthy diet and daily physical activity for their children. St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will:
Staff Wellness
St. Matthew Catholic Elementary values the health and wellbeing of every staff member and encourages activities and policies that support personal efforts by staff to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Monitoring
The principal will ensure compliance with established school district-wide nutrition and physical activity wellness policies.
At. St. Matthew Catholic Elementary:
Policy Review
The Principal will review the nutrition and physical activity policies and practices and the provision of the environment that supports healthy eating and physical activity at the end of the school year. St. Matthew Catholic Elementary will revise the wellness policies and develop work plans to facilitate their implementation.
Updated April 2019 by the SIAC Committe