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Engaging Superintendents for Successful Local School Wellness

Policy Implementation

Yuka Asada, PhD RDResearch Scientist

Institute for Health Research and PolicyUniversity of Illinois at Chicago

10th Biennial Childhood Obesity ConferenceJuly 18, 2019

Disclosure

The following personal financial relationships with commercial interests relevant to this presentation existed during the past 12 months:

No relationships to disclose.

Acknowledgements

• Funding for this study was provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture under cooperative agreement number USDA-FNS-OPS-SWP-15-IL-01. The USDA program officer is Holly Figueroa.

• Co-Authors:• Marlene Schwartz, PhD (Co-I) UConn Rudd Center for Food

Policy & Obesity• Jamie F. Chriqui, PhD, MHS (PI) University of Illinois at

Chicago

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Background

National Wellness Policy Study

• Mixed methods examination of Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act-related policies and their implementation

• Quantitative examination of association of district wellness policies and related state laws with outcomes and practices at district, school, and student levels

• Qualitative experiences and perspectives with wellness policies and school meal/snacks standards implementation and evaluation broadly

• What are stakeholders’ experiences and perceptions of revised school meal standards & local school wellness policy implementation?• Lessons learned/best practices & implementation challenges• Awareness of wellness policy & initiatives• Engagement with implementation • Resources and technical assistance utilized• Awareness and involvement with fundraising

(superintendents/parents)• Evaluation and reporting (superintendents)• Food and beverage marketing on campus (superintendents)

National Wellness Policy Study

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School Superintendents

• Superintendents are a critical stakeholder in the development and implementation of wellness policies

• No studies to date examine superintendents’ perspectives and experiences with wellness policies since the adoption of final rule

Research Question

What are superintendents’ perspectives and experiences with wellness policies?

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Study Methods

Sampling and Data Collection

• The School Superintendents Association (AASA) annual meeting March 2017

• Registered superintendents invited to participate in focus groups

• Focus groups (60 mins) and telephone interviews (30-60 mins, conducted by qual researchers

• Audio recorded and transcribed

UIC IRB (#2015-0720) and UConn IRB (H15-165)

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Coding & Analysis

• Coding guide developed with research questions, literature, and feedback from experts

• Team coding and analysis in Atlas.ti v8 Qual Data Analysis Software; use of memos, exploratory analysis functions

• Principals of constant comparative analysis• Preliminary themes shared and critiqued by experts

outside the analysis team

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Findings

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Implementation Takes Time

• Superintendents recalled initial implementation challenges but an overall positive process

It’s [LWPs] been a catalyst for discussion and has moved us along the pathway that’s probably a positive pathway. Not without some resistance and bumps in the road, but as I said earlier, it’s a process. It’s an evolution, not a top down edict that you can just wave a wand and it’s going to change the world. It takes time.

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Implementation Now at “Cruise Control”

• Superintendents described a certain level of ‘cruise control’ with implementation of school meal standards

It’s almost like if you were required to save energy and they required you to put solar panels on all your school buildings. Then they say now we’re not going to require that anymore. Well, you’re not going to rip them out and say we’re going to back an inefficient system that costs us more.

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Beyond the Wellness Policy

• Superintendents described incorporating “whole child” focus, including SEL and staff wellness

If people are morbidly obese, or they can solve a complex mathematical equation but they can’t take care of themselves because we didn’t instill those habits, then we’ve fallen terribly short of what we need to do as educators.

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Engaging Superintendents

• Delegate to wellness committees and coordinators

I think most superintendents I can think of understand the significance of wellness in their districts…One of the things I offer to my colleagues is the understanding that, while you need to lead it, you don’t have to do it…For me, that’s the most important part of our wellness policy. Who is the coordinator and that the committee is functioning.

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Challenges to Engagement

• Challenges included competing priorities and accountability

I know for a lot of my peers, everything we’re focused on is about student achievement and improving test scores because that’s how we’re being graded at the state level. Any policy or practice is really a second thought, an afterthought, because I have stay focused on academic achievement…so I think about wellness, but a lot of my colleagues would be like, that’s just kind of a checkbox.

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Improve local accountability

• Focus on accountability

I suggest that you interact with school boards and encourage them to encourage their superintendent with hiring as well as evaluation to value these activities [wellness initiatives]…because you are certainly accountable, you are hired and evaluated by your school board.

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Improve Access to “Vetted Tools”

• Provide tools to facilitate evaluation of wellness initiatives

If there was a tool we could use that had been vetted, that would help us evaluate our wellness program…and provide reasonable data to help us gauge over the course of 5 years to say…we’re making a difference, we’re not making a difference…and where can we make changes.

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Conclusions

Conclusions

• Superintendents described initial challenges but now a level of “cruise control”

• Many suggestions for advocates and peer-superintendents on increasing engagement with wellness activities • Delegating to wellness coordinator and committees• Accessing ”vetted tools” to facilitate evaluation of wellness policy• Improving local and state accountability

More great resources on our website

http://www.go.uic.edu/NWPSproducts

For More Information

Yuka Asada, PhD, RDResearch Scientist

yasada2@uic.edu

For Questions about the National Wellness Policy StudyJamie F. Chriqui, PhD, MHS

Principal Investigatorjchriqui@uic.edu

Twitter: @jfchriqui

National Wellness Policy Study Productshttp://www.go.uic.edu/NWPSproducts