Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC) HandbookA guide for U.S. Department of Health and Human Services OASH Regional Staff

DRAFT VERSION: NOT FOR DISTRIBUTIONThe content of this handbook will be updated. Please cross-reference any public information in this handbook with the content on www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org, as the information on the website is the most current. Version 1, March 2014

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Table of ContentsChapter 1: Background, Roles and Responsibilities ....................................................................................................4

Welcome to Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties....................................................................................................5

Background Information...............................................................................................................................................6History of Let’s Move! and Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties.........................................................................6The Five LMCTC Goals...............................................................................................................................................7

Roles and Responsibilities and Associated Activities of OASH Regional Offices.......................................................10Expected Regional Activities and Associated Regional, OASH HQ and NLC Tasks.................................................10Advanced Regional Activities and Associated Regional, OASH HQ and NLC Tasks................................................13

Chapter 2: Working with LMCTC Sites on Making Progress to Achieve the 5 Goals.................................................14

How a City, Town or County Gets Started...................................................................................................................15Signing Up................................................................................................................................................................ 15Launching a Community’s LMCTC Initiative .........................................................................................................16Forming a Let’s Move! or Childhood Obesity Taskforce..........................................................................................17

Pathway for Progress.................................................................................................................................................. 18

Different Levels of LMCTC Sites.................................................................................................................................19

Assessing and Reporting Progress—the Medal Status Survey....................................................................................24

Medal Awarding Process.............................................................................................................................................26

Helping LMCTC Sites Set Priorities and Design a Plan for Action.............................................................................27

How to Help LMCTC Sites Achieve the Five Goals......................................................................................................29Goal I: Start Early, Start Smart................................................................................................................................29Goal II: MyPlate, Your Place....................................................................................................................................32Goal III: Smart Servings for Students—this goal is currently being revised...........................................................33Goal IV: Model Food Service....................................................................................................................................36Goal V: Active Kids at Play.......................................................................................................................................38

How LMCTC Sites Can Take Action............................................................................................................................42

Helping LMCTC Sites Share their Work.....................................................................................................................43Community Profile Pages.........................................................................................................................................43Sharing Success Stories...........................................................................................................................................44Special Recognition Opportunities..........................................................................................................................44Using A City or County Platform..............................................................................................................................45

Other Support Available for LMCTC Sites..................................................................................................................46LMCTC Website: www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org..............................................................................46Partnering Organizations.........................................................................................................................................46Webinars and Newsletters.......................................................................................................................................47Peer Learning Opportunities...................................................................................................................................48Local Funding and Support......................................................................................................................................48National Funding Opportunities..............................................................................................................................49

Chapter 3: Additional Regional Activities and Support for OASH Regional Staff......................................................51

Additional Regional Activities.....................................................................................................................................52Hold quarterly calls with regional sites...................................................................................................................52Identify Mentor Sites who can serve as models to other LMCTC sites....................................................................52Form partnerships with each of the State Departments of Health and encourage alignment of LMCTC into State programs/initiatives.................................................................................................................................................52Build relationships with regional USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Offices...............................................53

Support Available for OASH Regional Staff................................................................................................................54

Contact Information.................................................................................................................................................... 55

Appendix...................................................................................................................................................................... 56A) Common Sign up FAQs you may receive.........................................................................................................56B) Blank Medal Status Survey.............................................................................................................................57C) Benefits of Participating in LMCTC Handout.................................................................................................63D) Community Profile Page Template.................................................................................................................64E) Success Story Submission Template..............................................................................................................70F) Welcome Email Template (in response to NLC’s initial email)......................................................................72G) Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties Community Assessment Tool..........................................................73H) Draft Information for Regional LMCTC Calls.................................................................................................76I) Criteria for inviting VIP Guest Speakers...........................................................................................................79J) Examples of successful implementation of LMCTC........................................................................................80

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K) Frequently Used Resources for Goal Implementation....................................................................................81L) LMCTC Shared Site.........................................................................................................................................82M) About the National League of Cities...............................................................................................................82

Chapter 1:Background, Roles and

Responsibilities

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Welcome to Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and CountiesThank you for your assistance with Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC)!

First Lady Michelle Obama launched Let’s Move! with the goal of reducing childhood obesity within a generation, so that children born today will grow up healthier and able to pursue their dreams. LMCTC is a key part of the Let’s Move! initiative and helps local elected officials (mayors, councilmembers, county commissioners, etc.) develop long-term, sustainable, and holistic strategies to promote improved nutrition and increased physical activity in their communities. LMCTC unites the efforts of cities, towns and counties across the country in pursuing five measurable and achievable goals.

As a regional Federal staff member assisting with this initiative, we are depending on you to be a key resource for LMCTC sites (defined as cities, towns and counties participating in LMCTC). While some LMCTC sites may have the motivation and understanding of how to make sustainable changes locally, many communities will need YOUR help to make progress on the five LMCTC goals. Our aim for this handbook is to provide you with a helpful overview of the initiative and a resource as you provide technical assistance to LMCTC sites. This handbook will also provide you with information on the distinct roles and responsibilities of the different partners working on LMCTC, including National League of Cities (NLC), who is the main non-federal partner for LMCTC and who is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

In this handbook, you will find information on:

Roles and responsibilities of HHS OASH regional staff How to guide a community through signing up for LMCTC How to help LMCTC sites achieve the five goals Resources to support LMCTC sites in achieving the five goals Helping LMCTC sites promote and share their success Reporting your efforts to HHS/OASH Headquarters and NLC

This handbook is to be used in conjunction with the Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties Website—www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org , and this website is referenced throughout this document.

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We look forward to working with you and thank you for your efforts to support city and county leaders in building healthier communities!

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Background InformationHistory of Let’s Move! and Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties Launched by the First Lady in February 2010, Let’s Move! is a comprehensive initiative dedicated to solving the problem of obesity within a generation, so that children born today will grow up healthier and able to pursue their dreams.

Everyone has a role to play in reducing childhood obesity, including parents and caregivers, elected officials from all levels of government, schools, health care professionals, faith-based and community-based organizations, and private sector companies. Recognizing the diverse roles of different sectors, there are a variety of Let’s Move! sub-initiatives including Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties; Let’s Move! Child Care; Let’s Move! Active Schools; Let’s Move! Outside; Let’s Move! Museums & Gardens; and Let’s Move Faith and Communities. More information about the sub-initiatives can be found at www.LetsMove.gov.

Launched in July 2010, Let’s Move! Cities and Towns provided the initial opportunity for local elected officials from municipalities across America to address the nation’s childhood obesity epidemic. About a year later, in order to ensure all localities had the opportunity to participate, elected officials at the county level were invited to join the initiative, creating the current name of the sub-initiative, Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties.

The National League of Cities (NLC) played an important role during this time in helping to recruit cities and towns to participate. In May 2012, NLC received a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to provide technical assistance to local elected officials working to create healthier communities and prevent childhood obesity, including those participating in LMCTC.

Based upon feedback from sites participating in Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties, participating sites were looking for specific guidance regarding local action that could be taken to make their communities healthier, needed direct technical assistance to further their local efforts, and emphasized how important it was to be recognized nationally for the successes made locally. In July 2012, these key changes were incorporated and Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties was relaunched.

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Also as part of this relaunch, five actionable goals were established using recommendations from the White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity Report to the President. The goals align with the five pillars of Let’s Move! Bronze, silver, and gold benchmarks have been established to help participating sites make progress towards completing each goal. NLC awards medals on a monthly basis to participating sites.

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The Five LMCTC GoalsGoal I: Start Early, Start Smart

To provide children with a healthier start, local elected officials commit to helping early care and education program providers incorporate best practices for nutrition, physical activity and screen time into their programs.

Bronze:  The LMCTC site has an active interagency collaboration on early care and education programs.

Silver:   Participation in Let’s Move! Child Care is promoted among early care and education providers using at least three approaches; plus Bronze benchmark.

Gold:   Each of the five goals of Let’s Move! Child Care has been integrated into at least one professional development training offered annually to early care and education providers; plus Bronze and Silver benchmarks.

Goal II: MyPlate, Your Place

To empower parents and caregivers, local elected officials commit to prominently displaying MyPlate in all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues where food is served.

Bronze:   At least 51% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food prominently display MyPlate, and the LMCTC site is registered to be a MyPlate Community Partner.

Silver:   At least 75% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food prominently display MyPlate, and the LMCTC site is registered to be a MyPlate Community Partner.

Gold:   100% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food prominently display MyPlate, and the LMCTC site is registered to be a MyPlate Community Partner.

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Goal III: Smart Servings for Students—Currently being revised.

To provide healthy food in schools, local elected officials commit to increasing participation in the School Breakfast Program (SBP) and the National School Lunch Program (NSLP).

Bronze: At least 60% of public schools participate in the SBP.

Silver:   At least 70% of public schools participate in the SBP, and at least 60% of public elementary and middle school students and at least 45% of high school students participate in the NSLP.

Gold:   At least 80% of public schools participate in the SBP, and at least 75% of public elementary and middle school students and at least 65% of high school students participate in the NSLP.

Goal IV: Model Food Service

To improve access to healthy, affordable foods, local elected officials commit to implementing healthy and sustainable food service guidelines that are aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans in all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food.

Bronze:   All municipally- or county-owned or operated food vendors and contractors are identified, along with the dates when their contracts can be amended or renegotiated.

Silver: A policy for healthy and sustainable food service guidelines aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans is adopted for municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food; plus Bronze benchmark.

Gold: At least 30% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food have implemented the policy for healthy and sustainable food service guidelines aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans; plus Bronze and Silver benchmarks.

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Goal V: Active Kids at Play

To increase physical activity, local elected officials commit to mapping local playspaces, completing a needs assessment, developing an action plan, and launching a minimum of three recommended policies, programs or initiatives aimed at increasing access to play.

Bronze:   All playspaces are mapped.

Silver:   A needs assessment of playspaces is completed and an action plan is developed; plus Bronze benchmark.

Gold:  At least three recommended policies, programs, or initiatives from the action plan are launched to increase access to physical activity; plus Bronze and Silver benchmarks.

Support and Partners

National League of Cities (NLC) and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) staff provide LMCTC sites with the resources and support necessary to meet the bronze, silver and gold benchmarks for the five LMCTC goals. Subject Matter Experts from federal agencies and national non-profit organizations are also available to provide support to address barriers LMCTC sites may encounter.

NLC is working in partnership with HHS with support from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the National Association of Counties and other nonprofit organizations to assist local elected officials who join LMCTC as they implement policy and environmental changes to prevent childhood obesity. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) supports NLC in the effort to create healthier communities and prevent childhood obesity, including those participating in LMCTC.

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Roles and Responsibilities and Associated Activities of OASH Regional OfficesThe charts below illustrate the activities you are responsible for and also reflect the roles of OASH HQ and NLC in supporting you with each of the activities listed below.

The first chart illustrates responsibilities that are expected by each region. The second chart, illustrating advanced regional responsibilities, contains items that are additional activities regional staff may want to take on if all expected regional responsibilities have been fulfilled and there is capacity.

Based upon their progress in the initiative, LMCTC sites have been classified by level to assist OASH Regional Offices and NLC in providing the appropriate technical assistance. The level definitions are reflected below, however more information regarding these levels can be found in the section Different Levels of LMCTC sites in this document (p. 19).

Site levels:

New - site that has signed up in last 45 days and has NOT submitted survey. Introductory- site that has NOT submitted survey and signed up over 45 days ago. Intermediate – site that has submitted initial survey and usually has received first round of medals. In

rare cases does a site submit a survey and not receive medals. Advanced – site that has received medals at least twice. Graduate – site that has received five gold medals.

Expected Regional Activities and Associated Regional, OASH HQ and NLC Tasks Activity Regional Staff Tasks Page for

Help OASH HQ Tasks NLC Tasks

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Provide Monthly Reports Highlighting Activities and Accomplishments

1) Utilize OASH Regional monthly report template for reporting activities and accomplishments.2) Send monthly report to OASH HQ.

Blank monthly OASH Regional report template to be developed

1) Review submitted OASH Regional monthly reports, respond to questions or concerns, and highlight important strategies worth sharing to all regions and NLC on monthly call first Thursday of month.

1) Review submitted OASH Regional monthly report and respond to questions or concerns.

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Activity Regional Staff Tasks Page for Help OASH HQ Tasks NLC Tasks

Hold Quarterly Calls with all LMCTC Sites within Your Region

1) Utilize quarterly calls communication templates and site contact information from monthly excel report for drafting scheduling emails to sites.2) Send communication, schedule and hold call.3) Provide requested TA to LMCTC sites following call.

Additional Regional Activities sectionp.52

Materials on p.76

1) Provide regional staff with draft agenda and assistance, if requested.2) Participate on call if appropriate.

1) Support regions where needed.2) Participate on call if appropriate.

Welcome New LMCTC Sites

1) After NLC sends initial initiative's welcome email to a new site in your region, reply to the email, and send a welcome email from the region, utilizing the welcome communication template.2) Provide support and general background info if requested.

Welcome section: p.15Welcome template email p. 72

1) Provide welcome communication template for regional utilization.2) Support regional staff if requested.

1) Alert regions of new sign ups and send initial welcome letter.2) Provide support and general background info to sites if requested.

Provide TA to Introductory Sites

1) React to specific questions from sites.2) NO proactive outreach done with these sites.

1) Support regional staff if requested.

1) Encourage sites to submit survey.2) Hold calls with sites to help them submit survey (with regional staff if possible).

Congratulate Intermediate and Advanced LMCTC Sites Awarded Medals

1) After NLC sends medal award email to a site in your region, reply to the email, and send the site a congratulatory email from the region.2) Provide requested TA to LMCTC sites who desire additional medals.

Medal Awarding Process section p.26

Congratulatory Communication Templates(to be created)

1) Provide congratulatory communication template for regional utilization.2) Provide regions with monthly medal updates in excel report.

1) Award medals on backend of website.2) Send medal award emails to sites receiving awards, and include local press template and suggest they update community profile page information since they have activities to share, copy regional staff on email notifications sent to LMCTC sites.

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Activity Regional Staff Tasks Page for Help OASH HQ Tasks NLC Tasks

Hold TA calls with Intermediate and Advanced Sites to Help Set Priorities and Design a Plan of Action

1) After an LMCTC site moves into the Intermediate category, hold TA call with site (POC) to help set priorities and design a plan of action.2) Follow up with site as needed.

Helping an LMCTC Site Set Priorities, Etc. sectionp.27

1) Support regional staff if requested.

1) Support regional staff if requested.

Proactively Provide Specific TA on five goals to Intermediate and Advanced sites.

1) Consult resources and tools available to support achieving the goals they are working towards.2) Offer advice that seems appropriate given the site’s progress and capacity.

Helping a LMCTC Site Set Priorities, Etc. sectionp.27

1) Support regional staff if requested.

1) Support regional staff if requested.

When Progress is Made, Encourage Intermediate and Advanced Sites to Update Survey.

1) Encourage LMCTC sites to update survey when additional progress has been made.2) Provide sites with their unique survey link and guidance in communication.

Assessing Progress and Medal Awarding Process section p.24-26

1) Provide survey links in monthly excel report

1) Provide troubleshooting with any technical problems on survey.

Showcase and Promote Successes Made by Advanced and Graduate Sites

1) Share success stories in your reporting and monthly calls.2) Utilize success story template.

Helping LMCTC Sites Share Their Work sectionp. 43

1) Write case studies/blogs/success stories as appropriate.

1) Develop success stories into case studies/blogs.2) Collect and illustrate success stories in each goal area on LMCTC website.

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Advanced Regional Activities and Associated Regional, OASH HQ and NLC Tasks (Activities each region can take on once expected activities are completed)

Activity Regional Staff Tasks Page for Help OASH HQ Tasks NLC Tasks

Encourage Intermediate, Advanced and Graduate sites to Complete Community Profiles

1) Encourage LMCTC sites to add content to community profile page when new activities have occurred by utilizing community profile communication template, including providing their specific URL and code, and providing guidance for completing.2) Provide requested TA to sites in need of assistance.

Information about community profile page on p.43

Template on p. 64.

1) Provide community profile template to regions.2) Provide Regions with unique community profile codes for each profile page within the monthly excel document.

1) Provide Regions with examples of community profile pages to suggest to sites.2) Review and approve content entered on community profile pages.3) Troubleshoot technical issues with submitting content.

Discuss with Intermediate and Advanced Sites How Coalitions/Taskforces Can Help Achieve Goals

1) Utilize monthly excel document to determine which sites document having a steering committee.2) Send communication3) Provide requested TA to sites in need of assistance.

-Additional Regional Activities sectionp.17-LMCTC Community Assessment Tool on p.73

1) Provide communication template to regions.2) Provide regions with steering committee status for each LMCTC site within the monthly excel document.

1) Support regions where needed

Identify Strong Sites(Advanced or Graduate) in Region that Can Serve as Mentors/Models for Other Sites

1) Read more about how to implement this activity in the section Additional Regional Activities

Additional Regional Activities sectionp.52

1) Support regional staff if requested.

1) Support regional staff if requested.

Build Relationships with each of the State Health Departments in your Region

1) Read more about how to implement this activity in the section Additional Regional Activities

Additional Regional Activities sectionp.52

1) Support regional staff if requested.

1) Support regional staff if requested.

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Build Relationships with Regional USDA Offices on Goals II & III

1) Read more about how to implement this activity in the section Additional Regional Activities

Additional Regional Activities sectionp.53

1) Support regional staff if requested.

1) Support regional staff if requested.

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Chapter 2: Working with LMCTC Sites on Making

Progress to Achieve the 5 Goals

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How a City, Town or County Gets StartedSigning UpA local elected official (or his/her designee) can get started with just ONE simple step to become a Let’s Move! City, Town or County (an LMCTC site):

Visit: www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org/get-started . On this page you’ll see a link to an orange box, “Click to Sign Up for Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties.” A city, town or county clicks on that link to fill out and submit the short sign-up form.

Those signing up are encouraged to identify a city or county staff person on the sign up form who will be the main point of contact for their efforts. For example, this individual might be a member of their staff, or an official in their municipal health department or parks and recreation department. We have found the best points of contact are usually someone who can arrange meetings, facilitate discussions and identify priorities. A local elected official can also designate this person later on.

Frequently asked questions about the sign up process appear in the Appendix (p. 56).

Next Step: Once a sign up has been received, NLC verifies there is a local elected official involved and sends a welcome email to the local elected official and staff point of contact (if designated) on their next steps, including submitting the medal status survey. The OASH regional staff will be cc’d on the welcome email and will also be sent the contact information for the new LMCTC site in a separate email from NLC. At that point, your responsibility is to follow up with your own welcome email to the new LMCTC site.

After a city, town or county signs up, they are considered a “NEW” LMCTC Site for the first 45 days. During this period, NLC is responsible for responding to any questions about the medal status survey

Please Note: If a city, town or county signed up to participate in LMCTC prior to July 2012, they need to fill out the sign up form again and indicate their willingness to commit to the five goals. We did not think it would be appropriate to assume everyone previously signed up would automatically commit to the goals, which is why we request this sign up.

Role of OASH Regional Staff in the Sign Up Process:

1. Utilize contact information provided by NLC to send a welcome email to new LMCTC sites introducing yourself (see Appendix p.72 for a communications template)

2. Highlight your new LMCTC sites when appropriate! Examples include during your quarterly calls, within newsletters, etc. Recognize the commitment of these

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(an LMCTC site’s first step), and will follow up with the LMCTC site after 30 days to offer help with the survey if it has not yet been submitted. OASH regional staff do NOT need to focus their attention on “NEW” LMCTC sites.

Launching a Community’s LMCTC Initiative

After signing up, LMCTC sites may want to launch their Let’s Move! efforts with a kick-off event (although this is completely optional). The LMCTC site may consider involving press or local celebrities, or partnering with local non-profit organizations. The event may serve as an opportunity for announcing their priorities in the five goal areas. Below are just a few ideas of what a community can do to launch their LMCTC initiative:

Hold a press conference at a local school or afterschool program.

Host an event at a recreation center, playground, park or trail.

Host an event at a child care center that is participating in Let’s Move! Child Care.

If holding a launch event isn’t currently within an LMCTC site’s capacity, they can consider other ways to communicate the news, such as posting information on their city or county website, issuing a press release, an article in a local newspaper, using Facebook ™ or Twitter ™, or announcing their commitment at a city/county council meeting. The Let’s Move! logo is available for their use as well (see page 45).

How can OASH Regional Staff assist with launch events and activities?

Share suggestions for their launch event/activities!

Provide sites with information on how to invite special guests, including the President’s Council on Fitness Sports and Nutrition. Please see Appendix p. 79 for resources that can be of assistance.

Offer to promote their launch among your regional partners, including partners in and around the community holding the initiative launch.

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Forming a Let’s Move! or Childhood Obesity TaskforceOptional activity: LMCTC sites should consider using a Let’s Move! or Childhood Obesity Taskforce or aligning with an existing Health or Wellness Taskforce. If they already have a taskforce working on related issues, they should not feel a need to create a new Let’s Move! Taskforce. They can consider convening city or county agencies, and other constituents such as (but not limited to):

School Districts Department of Health Parks and Recreation Department Department of Public Safety Planning or Zoning Department Hospitals Community Organizations/Foundations Early Care and Education Providers Sports Leagues Afterschool programs Businesses

Encourage LMCTC sites to include young people in their taskforce! As they begin work on the five goals, it will be important to hear from the constituents they are actually trying to help: young people themselves. Some mayors have youth advisory councils, student cabinets, or other methods of soliciting input from young residents. If youth are already civically engaged, consideration should be given to forming a sub-group that can focus on childhood obesity, or reach out to schools, after school programs, faith-based and neighborhood associations to find engaged

How can OASH Regional Staff assist sites in using a taskforce?

If approached, offer to hold a call with the LMCTC point of contact to discuss prospective local partners.

Leading questions to identify partners:o What departments are located within your

City/County Government (i.e. Department of Recreation, Public Health, Public Works, etc.)?

o Do these various departments have community coalitions they engage and utilize for implementation of their priorities, as well as educating the public?

o Does your city/county hold any large grants focused on health and wellness? If yes, who are the people/offices who oversee the implementation of those funds?

Tips for OASH Regional Staff:o Remember, you are a resource to sites and it is

your expertise they are seeking!o Offer assistance to help convene a meeting with

potential stakeholders. This can include OASH Regional Staff presenting on the benefits of community involvement in implementing LMCTC.

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youth to advise them. Also see if there is the presence of other Let’s Move! sub-initiatives in their city, town or county whose efforts could be included within their taskforce, such as Let’s Move! Child Care, Let’s Move Museum & Gardens, or Let’s Move! Active Schools. Learn more about the other sub-initiatives of Let’s Move! at www.LetsMove.gov.

Pathway for ProgressThe following process chart is a suggested pathway for LMCTC sites to make progress in this initiative. You may find that those you are advising are not following or do not plan to following these steps exactly.

The first step after signing up is for the LMCTC site to assess their starting place with the medal status survey (Page 24).

Medals Awarded (Page 26)

Sign Up (Page 15)

Assess Progress w/ Medal Status Survey (Page 24)

Celebrate Success (Page 44)

No Medals Awarded

Set Priorities and Design Action Plan (Page 27)

Consult Benchmarks, Steps to Success, Resources, and use Technical Support (Page 29)

Take Action by carrying out identified activities to reach benchmarks (Page

42)

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If they qualify for medals from their initial medal status survey, they’ll be awarded those medals by NLC and encouraged to Celebrate Success (Page 44) and then Set Priorities and Design Action Plan (Page 27).

If they do NOT qualify for medals, they head straight to Set Priorities and Design Action Plan (Page 27). After setting priorities, they Consult Benchmarks, Steps to Success and use Technical Support (Page 29). Then, they Take Action (Page 42) to complete the goals.

Once the site has made progress, they head back to Assess Progress. Encourage the LMCTC site to update their medal status survey to let NLC know they’ve qualified for additional medals.

The LMCTC site repeats this process until they reach five gold medals!

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Different Levels of LMCTC SitesThe chart below illustrates the different technical assistance roles of HHS Regional Offices, HHS HQ and NLC for each of the five levels of LMCTC sites: new, introductory, intermediate, advanced and graduate. As you’ll see in this chart, your focus as an OASH regional office is with sites at the Intermediate and Advanced levels. At this time, NLC will take primary responsibility for sites in the New and Introductory levels. Roles and responsibilities shown here are effective March 7, 2014 and will be revisited in 3 months. *Information regarding which category an LMCTC site is designated as is illustrated in the monthly Excel report provided by HHS HQ.

Roles/Responsibilities and Associated Activities and Tasks for NLC, HHS HQ, and OASH Regional Staff

Definitions for Site levels:• New - site that has signed up in last 45 days and has NOT submitted survey.• Introductory- site that has NOT submitted survey and signed up over 45 days ago.• Intermediate – site that has submitted initial survey and usually has received first round of medals. In rare cases does a site submit a survey and not receive medals.• Advanced – site that has received medals at least twice.• Graduate – site that has received five gold medals.Role/Resp

.Activity NLC's Tasks HHS HQ's Tasks OASH Regional Staff's Tasks

Pro

vide

Tec

hnic

al

Ass

ista

nce

(TA

)

When a community signs up for LMCTC, becoming an LMCTC site, NLC sends HHS regional office notification.*

Provide TA to New LMCTC Sites

• Alert regions of new sign ups and send initial welcome email to sites.• Provide support and general background info to sites if requested.• Encourage sites to submit survey.

• Provide communication template for regional utilization. • Support regional staff if requested• Highlight new sites in monthly excel report.

• After NLC sends initial initiative's welcome email to a new site, reply to the email, and send a welcome email from the region, utilizing the welcome communication template.• Provide support and general background info if requested.

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• After 30 days, if no survey is submitted, call to see if assistance is needed.

NLC will transfer New to Introductory if 45 days have passed and survey not submitted. If survey submitted, New becomes Intermediate.*

Provide TA to Introductory LMCTC Sites

• Encourage sites to submit survey. • Hold calls with sites to help them submit survey (with regional staff if possible).

• Support regional staff if requested

• React to specific questions regarding TA from sites.• NO proactive outreach done with these sites.

Prov

ide

Tech

nica

l Ass

ista

nce

(TA

) Once an Introductory has submitted survey, NLC will award medals if eligible and transfer to Intermediate.*

Provide TA to Intermediate LMCTC Sites

• Award medals on backend of website.• Send medal award emails to sites receiving awards, and include local press template and suggest they update community profile page information since they have activities to share, copy regional staff on email notifications sent to LMCTC sites.• Send quarterly reminders to sites suggesting they update their survey.

• Provide congratulatory communication template for regional utilization. • Provide regions with monthly excel report, which contains updated information on medal awards and unique community profile codes.• Support regional staff if requested.• Write case studies/blogs/success stories as appropriate.

• After NLC sends medal award email to a site, reply to the email, & send the site a congratulatory email from the region. • Hold TA call with site (POC) to help set priorities and design a plan of action. • Proactively provide specific TA on five goals to site by consulting resources and tools available, and offering advice that seems appropriate given the site's progress and capacity. • When progress is made, encourage site to update survey.• Follow up with Intermediate sites as needed until site becomes Advanced.If other tasks have been completed and a region has capacity:• Encourage LMCTC sites to add

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• Respond to TA requests as needed. • Support regions in providing TA to sites.• Conduct site visits and provide TA on site.

content to community profile page when new activities have occurred by utilizing community profile communication template, including providing their specific URL and code, and providing guidance for completing. • Identify strong sites in regions that can serve as mentors/models for other sites.• Discuss how coalitions/task forces can help achieve goals.

Once an Intermediate has received second round of medals, NLC will transfer to Advanced.*

Provide TA to Advanced LMCTC Sites

• Award medals on backend of website.• Send medal award emails to sites receiving awards, and include local press template and suggest they update community profile page information since they have activities to share, copy regional staff on email notifications sent to LMCTC sites.• Support regional staff if requested.• Conduct site visits and provide TA on site.

• Provide congratulatory communication template for regional utilization. • Provide regions with medal updates and unique community profile codes in monthly excel report.• Support regional staff if requested.• Write case studies/blogs/success stories as appropriate.

• After NLC sends medal award email to a site, reply to the email, and send the site a congratulatory email from the region. • Proactively provide specific TA on five goals to site by consulting resources and tools available, and offering advice that seems appropriate given the site's progress and capacity.• When progress is made, encourage site to update survey.• Showcase and promote success by sharing success stories in reporting and on monthly calls and by utilizing success story template.If other tasks have been completed and a region has capacity:• Encourage LMCTC sites to add content to community profile page when new activities have occurred by utilizing community profile communication template, including

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providing their specific URL and code, and providing guidance for completing. • Identify strong sites in regions that can serve as mentors/models for other sites.• Discuss how coalitions/task forces can help achieve goals.

Once an Advanced has achieved five gold medals, NLC will transfer to Graduate*

Provide TA to Graduate LMCTC Sites

• Showcase and promote success by developing success stories into case studies/blogs and collecting and illustrating success stories in each goal area on LMCTC website.• Assist with beyond gold activities.

• Support regional staff if requested.• Write case studies/blogs/success stories as appropriate.• Assist with beyond gold activities.

• Showcase and promote success by sharing success stories in reporting and on monthly calls and by utilizing success story template.• Assist with beyond gold activities.

If other tasks have been completed and a region has capacity:• Encourage LMCTC sites to add content to community profile page when new activities have occurred by utilizing community profile communication template, including providing their specific URL and code, and providing guidance for completing. • Identify strong sites in regions that can serve as mentors/models for other sites.• Discuss how coalitions/task forces can help achieve goals.

All SitesHold quarterly calls with all LMCTC

• Support regions if requested.• Participate on call if appropriate.

• Provide regional staff with draft agenda and assistance, if requested. • Participate on call if

• Utilize quarterly calls communication templates and site contact information from monthly excel report for drafting scheduling

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sites within region appropriate.

emails to sites.• Send communication, schedule and hold call.• Provide requested TA to LMCTC sites following call.

Build relationships with a few LMCTC sites

• Work with LMCTC sites to submit survey.• Work with LMCTC sites to complete community profile.• Write spotlights in newsletter.

• Write case studies/blogs/success stories as appropriate.

If other tasks have been completed and a region has capacity:• Build deeper relationships with a few LMCTC sites within region to learn more extensively how this work looks locally and work with these sites to serve as mentors/models for other LMCTC sites.

Build relationships with regional and state partners

• Support regional staff if requested

• Support regional staff if requested

If other tasks have been completed and a region has capacity:• Learn how regional/state partners (i.e. State Health Departments) can leverage existing technical support resources to help sites progress towards medal completion• Integrate LMCTC into other regional/state activities (i.e. state plan)• Maximize resources available and knowledge available in region by developing relationships with USDA regional offices

Maintain relationships with RWJF (funder)

• Primary liaison with RWJF• Have bi-weekly call with project officer• Provide monthly report and quarterly

• Support NLC if requested • N/A

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updates• Manage budget• Participate in monthly conference calls and twice per year gatherings

Maintain relationships with White House

• Support HHS HQ if requested• Interact with WH when needed, keeping HHS HQ in loop• Interact with other sub-initiatives when needed, keeping HHS HQ in loop

• Primary liaison with White House• Participate in monthly call with WH, HHS HQ and NLC• Participate in weekly call with WH and all sub initiatives• Primary liaison with other sub-initiatives

• N/A

Assessing and Reporting Progress—the Medal Status SurveyAfter a community has signed up for LMCTC, their first step is to fill out their medal status survey. Submitting this survey will give them a sense of their starting point for the five LMCTC goals, and will help them identify next steps for action and areas where technical assistance might be needed. At this time, NLC will take primarily responsibility for survey submission for those sites that have not yet submitted their initial survey (“New” and “Introductory” sites).

How can OASH Regional Staff assist?

The role of Regional Staff is to support NLC in their outreach to sites needing to submit their initial survey.

Remind LMCTC sites the importance of, and benefits to submitting their survey!

Although NLC conducts the outreach and provides assistance to sites in submitting their initial survey, Regional Staff should be aware of how an LMCTC site accesses their survey so they can be of assistance if sites have questions on updating their information.

Note: Submitting the initial survey is an essential first step for a site after they have signed up. Thus, Regional Staff should NOT be working with staff on other priorities until they have completed the initial survey. NLC is the lead in helping sites submit their initial survey, and Regional Staff can help reinforce this with sites.

Please note: within many communities not all data is housed in one place, and the survey can encourage cross-system collaboration towards healthier communities. If they are having trouble finding data, they can submit a partially complete survey and return to their survey at a later date.

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How do LMCTC sites access the survey? A municipality or county’s unique survey link is provided in their confirmation and welcome emails. This information is also provided to OASH regional staff within the monthly excel document. Please email lmctc@nlc.org if you need an LMCTC site’s survey link. A Word document version of the survey has been created to help LMCTC sites more easily circulate the survey to multiple departments and to help clear it through multiple channels for approval. An LMCTC site can also email the Word document version of the survey (see Appendix, Page 57) to lmctc@nlc.org.

About the Survey: The survey contains questions to assess an LMCTC site’s current activities within each of the five LMCTC goals. Survey responses are used to award bronze, silver and gold medals as an LMCTC site makes progress on the five LMCTC goals. While an LMCTC site must submit their initial survey as a first step after signing up for LMCTC to assess their starting point, they’ll update their survey responses whenever progress is made on the five goals. In order to earn bronze, silver and gold medals when benchmarks are reached, an LMCTC site must update us on their progress by resubmitting their survey.Tips for Where Local Data Might Be Located for Filling Out the SurveySome LMCTC sites may have trouble finding local data to fill out the survey. Common places where this data may be housed locally:

Goal I: Start Early, Start Smart:

Goal II: MyPlate, Your Place

Goal III: Smart Servings for Students

Where can an LMCTC site find the information to answer the questions on Goal I? Who can be a key partner on Goal I?

City/County health department, Department of Youth and Families, area healthcare provider, State Dept. of Children & Family Services, State Childcare Resource and Referral Agency, Local Headstart Office

Where can an LMCTC site find the information to answer the questions on Goal II? Who can be a key partner on Goal II?

Office of Contracts/Purchasing/Bids/Vendors, Park & Recreation Department, Mayor’s Office, Social Services

Where can an LMCTC site find the information to answer the questions on Goal III? Who can be a key partner on Goal III?

City/County school district, local healthcare provider, State Department of Education, local anti-hunger non-profit, School Nutrition Director. To help an LMCTC site complete this section, a potential resource may be the state education agency's child nutrition program director, which can be found by visiting:

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Goal IV: Model Food Service

Goal V: Active Kids at Play

Medal Awarding ProcessBased on the information an LMCTC site submits for their medal status survey, NLC awards medals monthly to LMCTC sites that have reached benchmarks in the five LMCTC goals. Remember, LMCTC sites must update their survey to receive additional medals in the five LMCTC goals.

The 25th of each month is the deadline for survey updates in order to be eligible for medals that month. NLC sends medal awards by email to the local elected official and designated point(s) of contact usually on the 30 th or 31st of each month. OASH regional staff is included on these emails. OASH regional staff are also alerted of new medals within their monthly Excel report, updated and distributed by HHS headquarters. In the medal awards email provided by NLC, an LMCTC site receives PDF certificates that can be displayed and shared with local stakeholders. In addition, to help them promote the exciting news to their community, they receive a hometown press release template that can be personalized and shared with local newspapers,

Where can an LMCTC site find the information to answer the questions on Goal IV? Who can be a key partner on Goal IV?

Office of Contracts/Purchasing/Bids/Vendors, Social Services Agency, City Manager’s Office, City Attorney’s office, city/county health department, Parks & Recreation department

Where can an LMCTC site find the information to answer the questions on Goal V? Who can be a key partner on Goal V?

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bloggers and other media outlets. You should encourage them to use social media to promote their achievements as well! Their medals are also displayed on their community profile page (see Page 43), and the LMCTC site moves up in the ranks on the Medal Standings Page (http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/see-progress/medal-standings/)

How can OASH Regional Staff assist?

Provide support and further encouragement to sites on the strides they are making to implement the five LMCTC goals in their community! This includes sending congratulatory emails after you are informed of the new medal awards.

When congratulating a site on a bronze medal, you can include suggestions on how to reach silver and gold. A similar practice can be done with a site that has received a silver medal, providing them with the steps to reach gold. See p. 29-41 for Steps to Success.

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What is the role of Regional Staff?

Offer to hold a call with sites to help them set priorities and design a plan for action to meet the goals and benchmarks.

Remember: not everyone will utilize the website or other resources on their own! Regional staff should remind sites of resources.

Utilize quarterly regional calls to highlight LMCTC sites that have had success as implementing the initiative, including those sites that have taken clear steps to ensure success. Steps include identifying creating a steering committee (which is an optional additional activity), drafting a strategic plan, executing plan, updating their survey and receiving recognition via the

Helping LMCTC Sites Set Priorities and Design a Plan for ActionOnce an LMCTC site has submitted their initial survey and has been awarded medals, a key role for you as an OASH regional staff person is to help the LMCTC site set priorities for their efforts and a design a plan for action. Remember, your goal is to provide the support to LMCTC sites in your region to get them to five gold medals!

We recommend that after an LMCTC site submits their initial survey and is awarded medals (when they move into the Intermediate Category), you host a call with them to help them set priorities and design a plan for moving forward to reach five gold medals.

In preparation for the call, review the LMCTC site’s survey answers (you can do so by visiting their unique survey link). You should also remind yourself what medals they have achieved to date, and make sure you have the necessary background on the LMCTC site to make the call successful.

On your call, consider the following areas of discussion and key questions:

Consider providing an overview of the five goals for the LMCTC site and reviewing the LMCTC site’s survey answers.

Are there multiple goals that the city would like to focus on next?o If so, what support do they need to reach the bronze, silver and gold benchmarks in those goal areas?

Which goal(s) may be a challenge for the LMCTC site? What are short term priorities for the LMCTC site?

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What are long term priorities for the LMCTC site? What is their capacity to carry out these activities? Are there suggestions that could be quick wins for them,

that might not involve a lot of effort? Have they achieved Goal II: MyPlate, Your Place yet? This may be a quick win for the LMCTC site. Are there any new connections that the LMCTC site will need to make to be successful? For example, does

the point of contact need to approach the Parks and Recreation Department on Goal V: Active Kids at Play to learn more about their efforts?

When does the LMCTC site want to be checked in on again?

Once you have obtained a clear understanding of the priorities and action plan a site intends to implement, an additional (optional) activity you might want to suggest is to discuss the benefits of creating a steering committee. Details on how to approach this discussion is in the Forming a Let’s Move! or Childhood Obesity Taskforce section on p. 17.

Also take the call as an opportunity to remind the LMCTC site they share additional progress made by updating their medal status survey. In addition, suggest they enter content in their community profile page (see Page 43) if they have information to share. Following the call, we suggest you send a follow up email thanking the local elected official or point of contact for their time and following up with any resources or links you referred to during the call. In your follow up email you can also resend their medal status survey link and instructions for adding content to their community profile page.

If you would like NLC or OASH HQ staff to participate in any of these calls with you, please contact Sarah Shrimplin (Sarah.Shrimplin@hhs.gov) or Elena Hoffnagle (Hoffnagle@nlc.org).

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How to Help LMCTC Sites Achieve the Five GoalsTo help an LMCTC site achieve the five LMCTC goals, the “Steps to Success” provide detailed suggested instructions for meeting the bronze, silver and gold benchmarks for each LMCTC goal. In the tables under each goal section below, use the Goal Benchmarks, Steps to Success, and Resources to assist an LMCTC site in carrying out the activities listed under each goal area. More resources and additional information for each LMCTC goal are available on the “Take Action” and “Resources” Tab of the LMCTC website, www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org. Note: the default for this information should be the website, which is where the most up-to-date information appears.

Goal I: Start Early, Start Smart To provide children with a healthier start, local elected officials commit to helping early care and education program providers incorporate best practices for nutrition, physical activity and screen time into their programs.

What are Early Care and Education Programs (ECE)?

Early care and education (ECE) programs include family and center-based child care, Head Start programs, preschools, and pre-kindergarten programs.

Why should local elected officials collaborate with ECE providers?

One in five children is overweight or obese by the age of six.  Encouraging healthy eating and physical activity early in life is vital to reversing the childhood obesity epidemic within a generation.  ECE programs exist in every community and are an ideal place to reach young children and help them develop healthy behaviors that can last a lifetime.  A local elected official has a powerful opportunity to support and recognize ECE providers in their community as they make improvements in their centers and homes to prevent childhood obesity, support children’s healthy development, and prevent early onset of chronic disease.

What is Let’s Move! Child Care?

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Let’s Move! Child Care (LM Child Care), a part of Let’s Move!, is a voluntary initiative to encourage ECE providers and parents to adopt a set of best practices for obesity prevention.  To learn more about LM Child Care and access free tools and resources, go to www.HealthyKidsHealthyFuture.org. More resources are available on the Goal I Resource Page:http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/view-resources/goal-i/

Benchmarks Steps to Success Resources Survey QuestionBronze: The LMCTC site has an active interagency collaboration on early care and education programs.

This collaboration could include:  health and human services agencies, child welfare organizations, park and recreation agencies, community and faith-based organizations, parent organizations, child care commissions, state or local child care resource and referral agencies, and ECE providers.

Consider whether the interagency collaboration:--Capitalizes on relationships your city’s, town’s, or county’s staff in family and child services agencies.--Includes vocational schools, community colleges or universities in their community that offer certification or degree programs in early care and education.--Builds upon an existing coalition of ECE providers in your community.  If one exists, have you reached out to this coalition to discuss partnership opportunities?--Leverages your city’s, town’s, or county’s Let’s Move! Task Force.  If one exists, does a representative of the ECE community participate in this task force?--Engages your local, county or state public health department.  Does this department have obesity prevention initiatives that target children in ECE settings?

The following entities may be helpful in coordinating training and technical assistance for ECE providers:--Local or state child care resource and referral agencies (CCR&Rs) (see http://www.naccrra.org/)---Extension services.  Find the local cooperative extension staff at: http://www.extension.org/child_care.--The state’s American Academy of Pediatrics chapter child care contact (see

To receive a bronze medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Do you have an active interagency collaboration on early care and education programs?”

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--Partners with nonprofit agencies in your area that support childhood obesity prevention in ECE settings.

http://healthychildcare.org/cccc.html.)--Local pediatric medical community--Head Start State Collaboration Directors (see http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/states/collaboration)--Local Head Start Health Services Advisory Council

Silver: Participation in Let’s Move! Child Care is promoted among early care and education providers using at least three approaches; plus Bronze benchmark.

Promote participation in LM Child Care to ECE providers in your community through at least three approaches. Establishing new or enhancing existing approaches to reach ECE providers can include incorporating messages about LM Child Care into:

Your city’s, town’s, or county’s website. Your city’s, town’s, or county’s public service

agency’s newsletter. A local elected official’s press announcement. A state of the city or state of the county

address by a mayor or county executive. City or county official statements supporting

LM Child Care and encouraging participation by ECE providers.

Local media stories and ads (television, newspapers, radio)

Visits made to local ECE providers. Community events and other opportunities for

ECE providers to sign up for LM Child Care. Opportunities for public recognition of ECE

providers who are implementing LM Child Care best practices.

To receive a silver medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Do you have an active interagency collaboration on early care and education programs?”, and must select three approaches under the question, “What approaches are you using to promote the five goals of Let’s Move! Child Care to local early care and education (ECE) providers?”

Gold: Each of the five goals of Let’s Move! Child Care has been integrated into at least one professional development training offered annually to early care and education providers; plus Bronze and Silver benchmarks.

Integrate each of the five LM Child Care goals into at least one professional development training offered annually to ECE providers. You are encouraged to work with your interagency collaboration to determine the steps needed to engage organizations and providers that offer professional development and training. Consider the following:

Take an inventory of the professional development training opportunities in the city, town, county, or state.  This is an excellent opportunity for CCR&Rs to partner with Child & Adult Care Food Program sponsors, health consultants, extension offices, community colleges and others.

Additional resources, including webinars, that can be used to help trainers incorporate the five LM Child Care goals into their professional development programs are available here: healthykidshealthyfuture.org/resources

To receive a gold medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Do you have an active interagency collaboration on ECE programs?”, must select three approaches under the question, “What approaches are you using to promote the

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Check with your state or local child care resources and referral agency (see http://www.naccrra.org/) to see if they provide professional development for ECE providers.

Identify aspects of the LM Child Care initiative that can be incorporated into existing training provided to ECE providers.

/webinars.html--Training information can be found here:Healthykidshealthyfuture.org/resources/trainers.html

five goals of LM Child Care to local ECE providers?”, and must indicate that they provide at least one professional development training that incorporates the goals of LM Child Care.

Goal II: MyPlate, Your Place To empower parents and caregivers, local elected officials commit to prominently displaying MyPlate in all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues where food is served.

Municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food may include employee and public cafeterias, vending machines, recreational facilities, public hospitals and clinics, juvenile detention centers, concession stands, and other areas served through distributive food programs.

What is MyPlate?

MyPlate, developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is a powerful visual reminder to choose healthier foods for building our plates at meal times, and to choose healthier choices among the food groups.  It is supported by Dietary Guidelines for Americans messages, with tools and resources available at ChooseMyPlate.gov.

What roles can local elected officials play in prominently displaying MyPlate?

Healthy eating is influenced by access to healthy, safe, and affordable foods, as well as by individuals’ knowledge, attitudes, and culture.  A local elected official can provide information and tools to support healthy eating. Easy-to-understand nutrition information, like MyPlate, at the point of purchase can help your employees, residents, and visitors make healthy food choices.

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Benchmarks Steps to Success Resources Survey Question

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Bronze: At least 51% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food prominently display MyPlate, and the LMCTC site is registered to be a MyPlate Community Partner.

1. Become a MyPlate Community Partner and receive free information and materials about MyPlate.  Sign up here: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/partnering-program.html.

2. Identify all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food in your city, town, or county.  These venues may include employee and public cafeterias, vending machines, recreation facilities, work sites, areas served by distribution food programs (e.g., a meals program for seniors), recreational facilities, public hospitals and clinics, juvenile detention centers and probation camps, and concession stands operated by the jurisdiction.

3. Download and/or order MyPlate materials for all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food.

o MyPlate graphic resources:  http://www.choosemyplate.gov/print-materials-ordering/graphic-resources.html

o MyPlate materials for download:  http://www.choosemyplate.gov/print-materials-ordering.html

o Order additional MyPlate materials here:  http://www.choosemyplate.

MyPlate Graphics: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/print-materials-ordering/graphic-resources.html

MyPlate Community Toolkit: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/food-groups/downloads/MyPlate/MyPlateCommunityToolkit.pdf

To receive a bronze medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Are you currently a Community Partner with USDA for Choose MyPlate?” and must indicate that at least 51% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food are prominently displaying MyPlate.

Silver: At least 75% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food prominently display MyPlate, and the LMCTC site is registered to be a MyPlate Community Partner.

To receive a silver medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Are you currently a Community Partner with USDA for Choose MyPlate?” and must indicate that at least 75% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food are prominently displaying MyPlate.

Gold: 100% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food prominently display MyPlate, and the LMCTC site is registered to be a MyPlate Community Partner.

To receive a gold medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Are you currently a Community Partner with USDA for Choose MyPlate?” and must indicate that at least 100% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food are

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gov/print-materials-ordering/order-online.aspx

4. Disseminate MyPlate materials to all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food and confirm that MyPlate is prominently displayed.

prominently displaying MyPlate.

Goal III: Smart Servings for Students—this goal is currently being revised.To provide healthy food in schools, local elected officials commit to increasing participation in the School Breakfast Program (SBP) and the National School Lunch Program (NSLP).

What are the SBP and the NSLP? Why are they important?

The School Breakfast Program (SBP) and the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provide funding through the U.S. Department of Agriculture to meal programs operating in schools and resident child care institutions.  State education agencies administer the lunch program at the state level, and local school food authorities operate it in schools.  The programs provide nutritionally balanced, low-cost or free breakfasts and lunches to children each school day.

By supporting school districts’ efforts to increase participation in the SBP and the NSLP, local elected officials can ensure that students receive at least two healthy meals every school day.  Studies conclude that students who eat school breakfast have higher math and reading scores and better results on cognitive tests compared with students who do not eat breakfast.1 Furthermore, because public schools receive partial, federal reimbursement for offering the SBP and the NSLP, costs incurred at the local level can be reduced.  Participation in the SBP and the NSLP can also decrease the financial burden on families.

Children and youth spend a large part of each day in school, providing an excellent opportunity to promote healthy behaviors.  Expanding availability, accessibility, and participation in the SBP and the NSLP is one of the best ways to support students’ health and academic performance.  The SBP and the NSLP are particularly helpful for students from lower-income families. The SBP and the NSLP provide meals to more than 11 million children and 31

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million children each school day, respectively. Healthy diets help children and youth grow, develop, and do well in school.

What roles can local elected officials play to increase participation in the SBP and the NSLP?

A local elected official can increase participation in the SBP and the NSLP by collaborating with school district officials to:

encourage enrollment in the SBP and the NSLP among eligible families who participate in other local government programs (e.g., low-income home energy assistance),

form partnerships between schools and other stakeholders from all sectors (e.g., community organizations, anti-hunger organizations, faith-based organizations, and city agencies), and

generate public awareness of the SBP and the NSLP through speeches; public events; the city, town or county website; mail inserts; or other means.

A local elected official can help reduce administrative barriers that discourage schools and students from participating in the SBP and the NSLP.  They can engage and convene key partners to provide more students with healthy meals at school.

Benchmarks Steps to Success Resources Survey QuestionsBronze: At least 60% of public schools participate in the SBP.

1. Determine current participation rates in the SBP and the NSLP.  This information can be obtained directly from participating school districts or from your state education agency’s child nutrition program director: www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Contacts/StateDirectory.htm

2. Consider forging a new partnership or expanding an existing partnership to increase participation in the SBP and the NSLP. A partnership can help you assess current barriers to participation, build support for SBP and the NSLP, increase program awareness, and identify new solutions and resources.  Questions for the partnership to consider can include:

School Breakfast Program Factsheet (USDA): http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/SBPfactsheet.pdf

The USDA School Breakfast Toolkit:  http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Breakfast/expansion/default.htm

National School

To receive a bronze medal, an LMCTC site must indicate that at least 60% of public schools participate in the SBP.

Silver: At least 70% of public schools participate in the SBP, and at least 60% of public elementary and middle school students and at least

To receive a silver medal, an LMCTC site must indicate that at least 70% of public schools participate in the SBP, and at least

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45% of high school students participate in the NSLP.

o Has your city, town, or county established partnerships with diverse stakeholders? Key stakeholders may include school administrators, school cafeteria managers, teachers, parents, businesses, youth, and other community members.

o Is your city, town, or county connected to your state education department and/or your USDA regional office to ensure schools are aware of available technical assistance and resources?

o Is there a perceived stigma associated with the SBP and the NSLP among students or schools that needs to be overcome?

o Are wellness policies in your school district up to date and being put into practice?

o Are schools participating in the SBP?3. Depending on their schools’ specific

circumstances, best practices for increasing school participation in the SBP can include alternate service methods (e.g., breakfast in the classroom); modifying pricing practices (e.g., eliminating charges for families that are eligible for reduced-price meals), and exploring creative menu ideas.  A local elected official can also help determine if there are administrative barriers that can be removed, such as limited trash pickup or infrequent bus service.

4. Strategies to increase student participation can include promoting the programs to eligible families through communications channels, including your city, town or county website; other local government programs focused on health, housing, or child care assistance; and other community outreach efforts.  Many families may not be aware that they are eligible for free or reduced-priced school meals.

Lunch Program Factsheet (USDA): http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/NSLPFactSheet.pdf

Breakfast and Lunch Program online resources (Food Research and Action Center):http://frac.org/federal-foodnutrition-programs/school-breakfast-program/andhttp://frac.org/federal-foodnutrition-programs/national-school-lunch-program/

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010: Provisions that Improve the School Food Environment:http://changelabsolutions.org/publications/HHFKA-school

60% of public elementary and middle school students and at least 45% of high school students participate in the NSLP.

Gold: At least 80% of public schools participate in the SBP, and at least 75% of public elementary and middle school students and at least 65% of high school students participate in the NSLP.

To receive a gold medal, an LMCTC site must indicate that at least 80% of public schools participate in the SBP, and at least 75% of public elementary and middle school students and at least 65% of high school students participate in the NSLP.

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Goal IV: Model Food ServiceTo improve access to healthy, affordable foods, local elected officials commit to implementing healthy and sustainable food service guidelines aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans in all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food.

Municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food may include employee and public cafeterias, vending machines, recreational facilities, public hospitals and clinics, juvenile detention centers, concession stands, and other areas served through distributive food programs.

Why are healthy and sustainable food service guidelines important?

Healthy and sustainable food service guidelines, aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, assist vendors and contractors for municipally- or county-owned or operated venues in increasing healthy food and beverage choices.  Such choices include the availability of seasonal vegetables and fruits; vegetarian, seafood, and lean meat entrees; whole grains; 100% fruit juice; and freely available drinking water. Healthy and sustainable food service guidelines are designed to make healthy choices more accessible, more appealing, and more affordable.  They are not designed to restrict choices. Healthy and sustainable food service guidelines can influence constituents’ food choices, improve the quality of food consumed, and create greater market demand for healthier foods.

What can local elected officials do to implement health and sustainable food services guidelines?

A local elected official can model healthy nutrition by adopting food purchasing policies and practices in city, town, and county venues to provide healthy food choices aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Given the many city, town, and county employees, constituents, and visitors who come into contact with these venues, adopting healthy and sustainable food service guidelines is an important strategy for improving constituents’ access to nutritious and healthy choices.

Benchmarks Steps to Success Resources Survey QuestionsBronze: All municipally- or county-owned or operated food vendors and contractors are identified, along with the dates when their

1. Identify all of the vendors and contractors owned or operated by your municipality or county that serve food and dates when contracts can be renegotiated.  This will help you determine how many municipally- or

To receive a bronze medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Have you identified all the vendors and

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contracts can be amended or renegotiated.

county-owned or operated venues serve food in your jurisdiction.  Local elected officials can use this information to determine if healthy and sustainable food service guidelines are currently being used, and if not, develop a timeline for implementing them in the food serving venues in their municipality or county.

o If healthy and sustainable food service guidelines are currently being used, can they be applied to all contracts and bids?  If so, proceed to step three.

o If healthy and sustainable food service guidelines are not currently being used, proceed to step two.

contractors for municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food and when contracts can be amended or renegotiated?”

Silver: A policy for healthy and sustainable food service guidelines aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans is adopted for municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food; plus Bronze benchmark.

2. Develop and adopt a policy for their healthy and sustainable food service guidelines to be used in contracts and bids for all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food.  The HHS/GSA food service guideline language can be used as an example:

http://www.gsa.gov/portal/content/104429 ; http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/guidelines/food-service-guidelines.htm

Improving the Food Environment Through Nutrition Standards: A Guide for Government Procurement http://www.cdc.gov/salt/pdfs/DHDSP_Procurement_Guide.pdf .

Guide to Healthier Vending for Municipalities and Model Vending Agreements (ChangeLab Solutions):http://changelabsolutions.org/publications/healthier-vending-municipalities

To receive a silver medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Have you identified all the vendors and contractors for municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food and when contracts can be amended or renegotiated?” and “Yes” to the question, “Has your municipality or county finalized model food service guidelines that align with the standards of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans for

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municipal- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food?”

Gold: At least 30% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food have implemented the policy for healthy and sustainable food service guidelines aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans; plus Bronze and Silver benchmarks.

3. Incorporate and implement your policy for healthy and sustainable food service guidelines into all food service and vending contracts and bids owned or operated by your municipality or county.  Consider:

o Designating a point of contact in each department, program, and food service venue, as appropriate.

o Developing a timeline for renegotiating contracts and issuing new bids.

o Determining what staffing or training will be needed for implementation.

4. Ensure that your policy is being implemented as planned, and that healthier food options are being offered in your municipally- or county-owned or operated venues.

o Determine who is responsible for ensuring the policy for healthy and sustainable food service guidelines is incorporated and implemented into contracts and bids.

o Determine who is responsible for compliance with the policy in food service venues.

o Develop a reporting process for compliance as part of your contracts.

Chicago, IL Healthy Vending Resources: http://www.cityofchicago.org/content/dam/city/depts/cdph/CDPH/BlueprintHealthierVending2013.pdf

Guide to Understanding Healthy Procurement (ChangeLab Solutions): http://changelabsolutions.org/publications/healthy-procurement

Healthy Vending Guide (Nemours Health & Prevention Services): http://www.nemours.org/content/dam/nemours/www/filebox/service/preventive/nhps/resource/healthyvending.pdf

To receive a gold medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Have you identified all the vendors and contractors for municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food and when contracts can be amended or renegotiated?” and “Yes” to the question, “Has your municipality or county finalized model food service guidelines that align with the standards of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans for municipal- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food?” and indicate that >30% of municipally- or county-owned or operated venues implement food service guidelines that align with the standards of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

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Goal V: Active Kids at PlayTo increase physical activity, local elected officials commit to mapping local playspaces, completing a needs assessment, developing an action plan, and launching a minimum of three recommended policies, programs or initiatives.

What are playspaces?

Playspaces are any place children and youth can play and be physically active.  Playspaces can include publicly accessible playgrounds, indoor and outdoor recreational facilities, skate parks, parks, fields, trails, and greenways.

What does it mean for playspaces to be inaccessible?

There are multiple ways to define lack of access, including but not limited to the following definitions: There are no playspaces in the neighborhood, or There are limited playspaces in the neighborhood, or The playspaces available to constituents are not safe, and determined inaccessible, or Constituents in the area of need cannot walk a reasonable distance (approx. ½ mile), travel by car or mass

transit to available safe playspaces.

There are other research-based definitions for lack of access.  Local elected officials can determine which definition best fits the needs of their city, town, or county and can use this information when assessing lack of access to playspaces in their community.

What does it mean for playspaces to be safe?

There are multiple ways to define safe playspaces.  Definitions may include components of injury prevention, crime statistics, and/or environmental concerns.  For example, a safe playspace could mean one in which youth or adults are less likely to be physically injured while using the playspaces.  A safe playspace also could imply that there are low incidences or reports of crime in or around the playspaces.  Finally, a safe playspace could mean limited exposure to environmental hazards, such as air or water pollutants. One community may choose components of one or all of these definitions to define safe playspaces.

What roles can local elected officials play in promoting physical activity?

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A local elected official can play an important role in promoting public health by removing barriers, increasing opportunities, and providing information to increase physical activity.  Furthermore, active communities provide opportunities that can benefit the local economy, deter crime, and support the local environment. Among other steps, they can expand opportunities for physical activity by ensuring that your constituents have access to safe, open venues (e.g., public parks, trails, playgrounds and indoor/outdoor recreational facilities) that are conveniently located for all youth and families.

Benchmarks Steps to Success Resources Survey QuestionsBronze: All playspaces are mapped.

1. Map the location of existing public playspaces in your community. Your map should include publicly accessible playgrounds, indoor and outdoor recreational facilities, skate parks, parks, fields, trails, greenways, and other public spaces designed for physical activity.  Methods to help you map parks and recreation facilities include but are not limited to:

o KaBOOM!’s free mobile mapping application http://kaboom.org/mobile

o Partnering with a local college, university, or health department’s geographical information system (GIS) experts to determine the latitude and longitude or address of a park or recreational facility to illustrate existing offerings which can be used with corresponding population data and indicate where gaps to access may exist.

o Using existing resources from local parks and recreation departments to determine the location of the parks or recreational facilities. This information may be available to you for free through http://www.nrpa.org/PRORAGIS

o Determining the location of recreational facilities in your county by using the Census Bureau’s County Business Pattern

To receive a bronze medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Have you mapped the playspaces in your community using KaBOOM!’s tool or another tool?”

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Database. This information is available to you for free at http://www.census.gov/econ/cbp/.

Silver: A needs assessment of playspaces is completed and an action plan is developed; plus Bronze benchmark.

2. Using the map of local playspaces, complete a needs assessment to identify neighborhoods in your city, town, or county where there are gaps in access to safe and convenient spaces for play and physical activity.  They should consider areas where playspaces are not accessible and safe, and policies or initiatives that may be needed to improve accessibility of those playspaces.

Conducting a Comprehensive Playspace Audit KaBOOM! http://kaboom.org/take_action/playmaker_network/assess_and_improve/conduct_comprehensive_playspace_audit

To receive a silver medal, a site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Have you mapped the playspaces in your community using KaBOOM!’s tool or another tool?” and must answer “Yes” to the question, “Using the map of your playspaces, have you assessed the need for safe, convenient places to play and be physically active in your community, and developed a plan to address those needs?”

Gold: At least three recommended policies, programs, or initiatives from the action plan are launched to increase access to physical activity; plus Bronze and Silver benchmarks.

3. Develop an action plan and launch at least three recommended practices to increase access to safe, convenient places to play and be physically active in your city, town, or county.  Such practices can include:

o Creating joint use agreements with community partners, including businesses, schools, churches, and indoor and outdoor recreation facilities.

o Developing or expanding safe routes to schools.

o Implementing a sustainable play streets program.

o Connecting communities to parks or recreational facilities by creating safe

The CDC Guide to Strategies to Increase Physical Activity in the Community: http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/downloads/PA_2011_WEB.pdf

Active Living Research Tools & Resources: http://activelivingresearch.org/resourcesearch

National Recreation and Park Association

To receive a gold medal, an LMCTC site must answer “Yes” to the question, “Have you mapped the playspaces in your community using KaBOOM!’s tool or another tool?” and you must answer “Yes” to the question, “Using the map of your playspaces, have you assessed the need for safe, convenient places

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sidewalks, bike lanes and pathways.o Revitalizing existing places for play and

physical activity by enhancing the safety and accessibility of playgrounds, parks, trails, greenways and public recreation facilities.

o Creating new places for play and physical activity.

www.nrpa.org

Joint Use Agreement Online Resources http://changelabsolutions.org/publications/model-joint-use-agreement-resources

Smart Growth America’s National Complete Streets Coalition:http://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/complete-streets

Safe Routes to School National Partnership Resource Center: http://www.saferoutespartnership.org/resourcecenter

to play and be physically active in your community, and developed a plan to address those needs?” and you must answer indicate that you have implemented at least three actions to increase access to safe, convenient places to play and be physically active.

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How LMCTC Sites Can Take ActionUsing resources available to them and the plan and priorities they have set, the next step for LMCTC sites is to take action to achieve the bronze, silver and gold benchmarks for each of the five goals. Be prepared to help LMCTC sites with problems they may face in implementing activities in the five goals, and feel free to contact NLC or OASH HQ staff with complex problems LMCTC sites may be having in implementing the goals.

Whenever an LMCTC site has done additional work that qualifies them for a new medal, please encourage that site to update their medal status survey with additional progress and resubmit. Remember, the information updated in their medal status survey is used to determine if additional medals need to be awarded to them.

Some things to keep in mind:

NLC and HHS do not verify or ask for proof that LMCTC sites have accomplished the activities on which they report taking action. You should NOT be verifying work that LMCTC sites in your region report, instead focus on helping the LMCTC sites make additional progress.

Every community is different! An LMCTC site may take action on a goal on a slightly different way than you may expect. Generally, as long as their efforts align closely with bronze, silver and gold benchmarks, that will be sufficient.

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Helping LMCTC Sites Share their WorkCommunity Profile PagesEvery LMCTC site has a Community Profile Page on the LMCTC website, where they can publicly share their achievements and learn from peers about other activities. NLC is more likely to feature and promote the work of LMCTC sites with completed community profile pages. Please note: to receive additional medals, sites must update their medal status survey; information submitted on a site’s community profile page is not what is used to determine whether medal benchmarks have been met for medal awarding purposes. The community profile is simply a way for them to share additional information, and content added is not used in the medal awarding process.

What an LMCTC site adds to their community profile page is at their discretion. Ideally, sites should update their information when they make progress. Upon submission of new content to pages, NLC will review the information to ensure it’s consistent with the initiative (usually within 48 hours). The site receives an email notification when updates to their profile page are posted on the website.

How does an LMCTC site locate and add content to their profile page?

1. A community profile page can be found from the Directory of LMCTC Sites (http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/see-progress/directory/)

2. To add content, scroll down to the bottom right of the page and click where it says, “Are you the local elected official? Click here to update your page.”

3. In the window, the LMCTC site enters their unique alphanumeric ID code. This ten-digit code is the code that appears at the end of their survey link. These codes are provided monthly within the excel document

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provided to OASH regional staff by HHS headquarters. This code can also be obtained by sending an email request to lmctc@nlc.org.

Communities may find it helpful to use the template in the Appendix (Page 64) to gather content before submitting it. If they have problems adding content to their page, email lmctc@nlc.org for assistance.

Sharing Success StoriesCities, towns and counties across the country are doing great work to create healthy communities for their residents and to prevent childhood obesity. NLC and HHS HQ collect success stories to be used as unique opportunities arise to highlight LMCTC sites nationally. These opportunities can include being highlighted on www.LetsMove.gov and www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org, in webinars and newsletters, as well as in speaking engagements by senior federal officials, and the leadership of NLC.

Although there is no guarantee a success story will be highlighted, LMCTC sites are encouraged to share innovative practices, major local achievements, unique partnerships, and/or collaboration with other Let’s Move! sub-initiatives. LMCTC sites can share their success by using the success story template (Appendix p. 70).

Special Recognition OpportunitiesIn addition to the monthly medal awards, additional opportunities are available to recognize LMCTC’s top achievers and give special accolades to sites making considerable progress in transforming their city, town or county into a healthier community.

Opportunities include:

Yearly recognition of the top achieving LMCTC sites by population size at NLC’s Congress of Cities and Exposition (COC) in November each year. In November 2013, NLC recognized 18 cities, towns and counties with the top medal achievement in the five LMCTC goals. Information about next year’s special recognition will be sent to participating LMCTC sites in Fall 2014.

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In the past, LMCTC sites have been invited to special events, including a White House celebration featuring the First Lady.

Using A City or County PlatformFor LMCTC sites, getting the word out to local residents and marketing and branding efforts at the local level can be a key way to foster greater community buy-in and engagement and can serve as a tool for integrating related efforts around healthy eating and physical activity under one umbrella. Marketing Let’s Move! activities can also signal to the public that health is a city/county priority and can increase community awareness of city or county activities.

Consider encouraging LMCTC sites to brand their efforts.

Some cities have created a Let’s Move! brand for their efforts, such as Let’s Move Columbia!, Let’s Move! Boise, and Let’s Move Cheney.

How can OASH Regional Staff help sites share their work?

Encourage LMCTC sites to add content to their community profile pages. When encouraging completion, it is important to share with the LMCTC site a link to their profile page, their unique access code and where to enter the access code on the page.

Only sites that are Intermediate, Advanced and Graduate should be encouraged to add content to their community profile page. Please do NOT instruct sites to add content to their profile page until they have submitted their initial survey.

Completed forms can be submitted to Aisha Hasan at aisha.hasan@hhs.gov.

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High quality versions of the Let’s Move! logo are available at: http://www.letsmove.gov/logo-and-usage . Please encourage LMCTC sites to follow the guidelines for use.

Other cities have incorporated their Let’s Move! work into an existing community health brand, such as Healthy BR (Baton Rouge), Jumpstart Jackson (TN), or Healthy Fontana (CA).

Getting the Word Out

LMCTC sites can consider creating a Let’s Move! page on their city, town or county website, or creating a new website or Facebook page devoted to their efforts. They may also think about incorporating information about the community’s LMCTC work in existing publications such as a Parks and Recreation Guide, School Lunch Menu or City Newsletter. Cross-promoting with other city events and co-branding with other city initiatives or programs can also amplify the reach of their work with minimal extra effort. Local media and bloggers can also be valuable communicators. They should consider taking advantage of free or reduced price media they have access to as a city or county official, such as a community public access channel, billboards, or ads on buses or other public transportation.

Other Support Available for LMCTC SitesLMCTC Website: www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.orgA great first source of support for LMCTC sites is the Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC) Website— www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org which provides resources to help LMCTC sites complete the five goals, highlight their success, and facilitate peer-to-peer learning.

In particular, the “News” section is updated frequently with new funding opportunities, webinars, articles and resources that may be useful. Please encourage LMCTC sites to check this page frequently. In addition to information about the five goals, the “News” tab also hosts recordings of all LMCTC webinars, a large collection of resources, and city spotlights.

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Partnering OrganizationsAs a reminder, NLC is working in partnership with HHS with support from the USDA, the National Association of Counties and other nonprofit organizations to assist local elected officials who join LMCTC as they implement policy and environmental changes to prevent childhood obesity.

LMCTC sites should contact NLC with inquires related to:

General questions about LMCTC Signing up for LMCTC Submitting the medal status survey The medal awarding process Adding content to their community profile page Connecting with peer cities, towns and counties Webinars and newsletters The LMCTC Website: www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org

LMCTC sites should contact their OASH Regional Let’s Move! Advisor with questions related to:

Accomplishing the five goals Setting priorities and developing a timeline Connecting with other cities, towns or counties in their region Connecting with subject matter experts Sharing success stories

Subject matter experts partner with the NLC and HHS to provide in-depth, high-level technical support on specific challenges in the five LMCTC goals. Subject matter experts are available to work with cities, towns and counties participating in LMCTC on a case-by-case basis, as needed. If an LMCTC site is facing a specific challenge or concern that you think would benefit from high-level assistance, you should talk to HHS HQ about being connected with a subject matter expert. Subject matter experts come from organizations and agencies such as:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) www.cdc.gov U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) www.usda.gov Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) www.frac.org

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ChangeLab Solutions www.changelabsolutions.org KaBOOM! www.kaboom.org

Webinars and NewslettersAll of NLC’s LMCTC webinars are recorded and available to view. Visit the webinar archive http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/news/webinar-archive/ to view a recorded webinar. In particular, LMCTC sites may find webinars that focus on each of the five goals very helpful. For example, the Goal IV: Model Food Service Webinar features a subject matter expert from the CDC speaking on the topic of healthy food procurement, and includes a spotlight on the City of Chicago and their efforts to institute healthy vending throughout city buildings. Have an idea for an upcoming webinar? Email us at lmctc@nlc.org

The LMCTC newsletter is sent out monthly and spotlights LMCTC sites, shares information about upcoming events and webinars of interest, as well as resources and opportunities. New LMCTC sites are automatically signed up for the LMCTC newsletter. If someone other than the LMCTC site’s elected official or point of contact would like to receive the newsletter, they can sign up at: http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/news/newsletter-signup/ .

In addition, NLC sends blast email messages a few times a year with important stand-alone notifications. As an OASH regional staff, you should feel free to send periodic blast emails to LMCTC sites in your region with funding opportunities or other important notifications. You may also have state-specific opportunities or messages to send.

Peer Learning OpportunitiesWe strongly believe peer-to-peer learning is one of the best ways to share information. As OASH regional staff, you should always feel free to connect communities with other local elected officials or city/county staff in their state, region or nationally who have successfully launched an initiative like the one an LMCTC site may be working on, or have recently achieved a medal benchmark that may be proving difficult for one of your LMCTC sites. Communities across the country are ready and willing to share their experiences and lessons learned. For example, one of your sites may be planning to host trainings for childcare providers to achieve the Goal I gold medal. You could connect them with city staff in a community that has held multiple trainings for child care providers.

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What is the role of OASH Regional Staff?

Host quarterly calls with sites in your region to provide peer-learning opportunities. These calls are a chance to hear what other LMCTC sites have found to be successful, discuss similar challenges, and make connections with other city and county leaders. See Appendix p. 76 for sample agendas, invitations and more information about hosting these calls.

Contact NLC if one of your LMCTC sites is looking for or would benefit from a peer mentor.

Furthermore, you are encouraged to connect with other HHS Let’s Move! Advisors to hear how they are interacting with the LMCTC sites in their regions, the different methods they are using to provide technical assistance, and learn about successful practices.

Local Funding and SupportIn the development of the five goals, efforts were made to focus on strategies that would not take significant funds to implement, and also provide lower cost alternatives, such as policy development. However, LMCTC sites may still be interested in support and/or funding for their LMCTC efforts.

Although there is no specific funding from NLC or HHS available for LMCTC sites, regional staff may be able to

assist sites in locating relevant funding opportunities. For many communities, the best starting point for funding and support may be at the local level; many LMCTC sites have received funding or in-kind donations from local groups such as:

Community Foundations HMOs, such as Blue Cross, Blue Shield or Kaiser Permanente Rotary Clubs, Kiwanas Clubs, or Junior Leagues Businesses, especially athletic or running stores, gyms, pharmacies, or grocery stores Media outlets Community colleges and universities

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National Funding Opportunities Funding may also be available at the national level. The following organizations have in the past offered funding opportunities for communities interested in improving the health and well-being of all residents through policy and environmental change strategies.

KaBOOM!, a national non-profit that envisions a great place to play within walking distance of every child in America. kaboom.org

Convergence Partnership, a collaboration of funders, founded on the belief that health and place are inextricably linked. www.convergencepartnership.org

Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, the foundation’s giving reflects a commitment to transforming the lives of children living in urban poverty through better health and education. www.msdf.org

The Foundation Center, a national nonprofit service organization recognized as a leading authority on organized philanthropy, connecting nonprofits and grant makers supporting them with tools they can use and information they can trust. www.foundationcenter.org

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which provides grants for projects in the U.S. and U.S. territories that advance their mission to improve the health and health care of all Americans. www.rwjf.org

Kaiser Permanente, the nation’s largest nonprofit health plan, is dedicated to proactively helping people get and stay healthy. In Community Benefit, Kaiser Permanente partners with public and private organizations to work toward the elimination of disparities in health and health care by providing access to care for all. http://share.kaiserpermanente.org/category/about-community-benefit/

W. K. Kellogg Foundation supports children, families and communities as they strengthen and create conditions that propel vulnerable children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society. www.wkkf.org

Kresge Foundation works to expand opportunities in America's cities through grantmaking and investing in arts and culture, education, environment, health, human services, community development and place-based efforts in Detroit. www.kresge.org

Nemours Health and Prevention Services is taking a leading role to help people understand the causes and health implications of obesity and to promote healthier lifestyles among children and families. www.nemours.org

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The California Endowment, a private health foundation that provides grants to community-based organizations throughout California. www.calendow.org

Safe Routes to School National Partnership is a network of hundreds of organizations, government agencies and professional groups working to set goals, share best practices, and leverage infrastructure and program funding to help agencies that implement Safe Routes to School programs. www.saferoutespartnership.org

These suggestions are by no means an exhaustive list of resources, but a starting point for an LMCTC site’s research.

Communities can use their status as a Let’s Move! City, Town or County to their advantage! Some LMCTC sites have found that having the groundwork completed, such as establishing a local committee dedicated to these issues and/or having an action plan developed, makes their work more attractive to funders. In addition, NLC is able to offer letters of support or verification of an LMCTC site’s efforts to support applications for funding.

On the federal side, SNAP-Ed (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Nutrition Education) may be a good resource for LMCTC sites as well. The goal of SNAP-Ed is to improve the likelihood that persons eligible for SNAP (Food Stamps) will make healthy food choices with a limited budget and choose physically active lifestyles consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. SNAP-Ed is implemented through partnerships with state agencies, land grant institutions, state and local public health departments, food banks, and tribal programs. An LMCTC site can find the state SNAP office or implementing agency for their state at: http://snap.nal.usda.gov/state-contacts

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Chapter 3: Additional Regional Activities and Support

for OASH Regional Staff

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Additional Regional Activities Hold quarterly calls with regional sitesThe facilitation of quarterly calls provides an array of benefits for both the LMCTC sites and OASH Regional Staff. The benefits include however, are not limited to:

Opportunity for OASH regional staff to share regional and national Let’s Move! updates Sharing of resources by both HHS to sites and sites to their peers/other sites and HHS Featured presentations, including special guests, on topics of interest to regional sites OASH Regional Staff building their reputation as an important resource to sites Relationship building with regional sites

Template emails for engaging sites in regional calls, a draft agenda and accompanying notes can be found in Appendix p. 76-78.

Identify Mentor Sites who can serve as models to other LMCTC sitesPeer-to-peer education can be one of the most effective methods for learning. Providing sites needing assistance with the opportunity to speak one-on-one with another site encourages collaboration and could avoid a site committing time to activities that others have found not successful. In addition, OASH regional staff can approach the distinction of a Mentor site as opportunity to highlight their Graduate Level sites or other high achieving LMCTC sites.

Questions to consider when determining who could serve as a Mentor site:

Who are the High-Achieving or Graduate sites in the region? Of the High-Achieving sites, are there any who are vocal in sharing details of their work during your regional

quarterly calls? What sites are enthusiastic about implementing LMCTC? Have any of your sites been featured on a previous webinar offered by NLC?

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Form partnerships with each of the State Departments of Health and encourage alignment of LMCTC into State programs/initiatives OASH partnerships with State Government leadership occur frequently in regional offices. Regional staff may wish to utilize existing relationships, and those of their Regional Health Administrator (RHA)/Deputy Regional Health Administrator (DRHA), to coordinate the promotion of LMCTC and implementation of statewide activities, such as utilizing these partners to learn of existing activities to address childhood obesity. State Chronic Disease Directors may be appropriate contacts, in addition to the State Health Officers.

Once potential partners have been identified, encourage collaboration by aligning priorities and identifying opportunities for LMCTC integration into existing or planned State programs.

Build relationships with regional USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) OfficesForming a relationship with the regional USDA FNS Office can provide numerous benefits to both OASH regional staff as well as the sites they are advising. Making this connection may allow access to updates and resources available by the USDA, as well as opportunities for collaboration.

OASH regional staff should work with their Regional Health Administrator when starting conversations with the USDA. Your RHA might want to contact the USDA FNS Regional Administrator personally, as one suggestion. Contact information for each of the USDA FNS Regional Offices is found here: http://www.fns.usda.gov/fns-regional-offices.

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Support Available for OASH Regional Staff

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Providing assistance to an LMCTC site can bring a number of questions you may need assistance in answering. Support systems are available to you and you are encouraged to utilize NLC and HHS HQ as you feel appropriate. Please see contact information on p. 55.

Subject Matter Experts (SME)

If OASH regional staff are presented with an inquiry from a LMCTC site that may need the assistance of a SME, please inform Sarah Shrimplin at sarah.shrimplin@hhs.gov and she will assist with arranging a dialogue with the appropriate parties.

The SMEs include:

Goal 1o ACFo CDC

Goal 2: o USDA

Goal 3:o USDAo FRAC

Goal 4:o CDC o Change Labs

Solutions

National League of Cities

NLC can answer questions, and provide guidance, to topics pertaining to the following:

Surveys and LMCTC site’s survey data

Community Profiles Medal Awarding Alternate contacts for

sites History of site

engagement NLC LMCTC website Webinars Newsletter NLC involvement in

calls with LMCTC sites and other partners associated with local, state and Federal partnerships.

.

HHS Headquarters

HHS Headquarters can answer questions and provide guidance, to topics pertaining to the following:

Regional Report-outs Monthly Excel Reports Monthly Word

Document Reports Let’s Move! Blog Invitations engaging

Administration Officials to participate in events

HHS/OASH Regional Roles within the LMCTC initiative

Headquarters involvement in calls with LMCTC sites and other partners associated with local, state and Federal partnerships.

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Contact InformationNational League of Cities (NLC)

Tracy Wiedt Elena Hoffnagle General LMCTC ContactLMCTC Program Manager LMCTC Program Associate lmctc@nlc.org wiedt@nlc.org hoffnagle@nlc.org 202-626-3002 202-626-3012

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Headquarters

Robin McKinnon Sarah Shrimplin Aisha HasanHHS LMCTC Program Director HHS LMCTC Program Manager Program Analystrobin.mckinnon@nih.gov sarah.shrimplin@hhs.gov aisha.hasan@hhs.gov 240-276-6921 215-861-4620 240-453-8133

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Regional Staff

Region I—Boston, MACT/ME/MA/NH/RI/VTJessica Sheeran Jessica.Sheeran@hhs.gov (617) 565-6622

Region II—New York, NYNJ/NY/PR/VIMichelle Davis Michelle.Davis@hhs.gov (212) 264-2560

Region III—Philadelphia, PADE/DC/MD/PA/VA/WVJoshua Prasad Joshua.Prasad@hhs.gov (215) 861-4624

Region IV—Atlanta, GAAL/FL/GA/KY/MS/NC/SC/TN

Tyra Norris-Ellis Tyra.Norris-Ellis@hhs.gov (404) 562-7548

Region V—Chicago, ILIL/IN/MI/MN/OH/WIBidisha Sinha Bidisha.Sinha@hhs.gov (312) 353-1386

Region VI—Dallas, TXAR/LA/NM/OK/TXStacy Harper Stacy.Harper@hhs.gov (214) 767-3490

Region VII—Kansas City, MOIA/KS/MO/NESherry Mirador Sherry.Mirador@hhs.gov (816) 426-2821

Region VIII—Denver, COCO/MT/ND/SD/UT/WYMeghan Marshall Meghan.Marshall@hhs.gov (303) 844-7854

Region IX—San Francisco, CAAZ/CA/HI/NV/Guam/Pacific Islands/Amer. Samoa, Sheila James Sheila.James@hhs.gov (415) 437-8075

Region X—Seattle, WAAK/ID/OR/WAMolly Reece Molly.Reece@hhs.gov (206) 615-3772

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AppendixA)Common Sign up FAQs you may receive

How can I find out if my community is already participating in LMCTC?

Visit the Directory Page: www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/see-progress/directory for a listing of all participating LMCTC sites. If the community is participating, you can click on the name of that community, which will take you to its profile page, where you’ll be able to see the local elected official representing that community.

What if I am not a local elected official, and I want to get involved in LMCTC?

Connect with your mayor, city councilmembers, county executive, county commissioners or other local elected officials to see if they are interested in committing to the initiative. The LMCTC One-Pager (www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/LMCTC-Flyer-2013.pdf) may be helpful in educating them about the initiative. Additionally, you can become involved in the more comprehensive Let’s Move! initiative by checking out the other opportunities at www.letsmove.gov.

Are there costs associated with joining the initiative? Do cities and towns need to pay membership fees to the National League of Cities to participate?

There are no costs associated with joining the initiative.  Although NLC is a membership organization and collects dues from its members, cities and towns are not required to pay membership dues nor be a member of NLC to participate in LMCTC.

Can my point of contact for the initiative be from a community non-profit organization?

Yes, the designated point of contact can be from an organization outside of the city or county government, such as a local non-profit working on health and wellness issues. However, the commitment to sign up for LMCTC needs to come from a local elected official, designating the point of contact, and the point of contact should plan to work closely with city or county officials on the five LMCTC goals.

Can municipalities outside of the United States participate in LMCTC?

Foreign municipalities are NOT eligible to sign up for LMCTC. U.S. Territories and Associated States are welcome to join LMCTC.

Can multiple local elected officials (i.e. two councilmembers) from the same community or an entire city council be the community’s LMCTC representative?

Yes, please submit the sign up form indicating just one local elected official, and send an email to lmctc@nlc.org indicating the names, titles and emails of additional elected officials who will be representing the community.

B)Blank Medal Status Survey Let’s Move! Cities, Towns, and Counties Medal Status SurveyPlease fill out the following survey to the best of your ability. We understand you may need time to answer all of the questions, as such, you can submit the survey multiple times. Click here to review the goals before completing the survey »   If you have questions while taking this survey, please email lmctc@nlc.org or call Elena Hoffnagle at (202)626-3012.

Mandatory fields in red

What is your municipality name?

What is your municipality’s State? 

What type of municipality are you? ☐ City  ☐ Town  ☐ County

What is the name, title, and contact information for the Elected Official leading the Let’s Move! efforts?

☐ Mayor☐ Town Administrator/City Manager☐ City Council Member☐ Alderperson☐ County Executive/Commissioner☐ County Supervisor☐ County Council Member

NameAddress 1Address 2City/TownStateZip CodeEmailTelephone

Do you have a lead person who will coordinate your community's Let's Move! activities and be responsible for reporting progress to Let's Move! on HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org?

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☐ Yes  ☐ No

Name, OrganizationEmailPhoneHave you established a Let’s Move! Task Force or work group? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

If there is a political affiliation associated with your position, please identify your affiliation (optional).

☐ Democrat☐ Republican☐ Independent☐ Other☐ N/A

In order to be recognized as a Let’s Move! City, Town, or County, a local elected official must be willing to commit to the five goals of Let’s Move! Cities, Towns, and Counties and regularly update Let’s Move! on your progress by completing an initial medal status survey and providing updates to the survey over time.

Click here to review the goals before completing the survey »  

☐ I am willing to commit to the five goals of Let’s Move! Cities, Towns, and Counties and do what I can to further combat childhood obesity in my community.

Goal I: Start Early, Start SmartLet’s Move! Child Care is a nationwide effort to empower early care and education providers to make positive changes for children’s health that can last a lifetime by focusing on good nutrition, limited screen time, and regular physical activity.

Are you partnering with your state’s Child Care Resource and Referral Agency? (The Child Care Resource and Referral Agency is a key partner in Let’s Move! Child Care.) ☐ Yes  ☐ No

Are you familiar with the five goals of Let’s Move! Child Care? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

1. Physical Activity: Provide 1-2 hours of physical activity throughout the day, including outside play when possible.

2. Screen Time: None under age 2. For 2 and up, work to limit to 30 minutes/week during child care.

3. Food: Try to serve fruits or vegetables at every meal. Eat meals family-style whenever possible. Avoid serving fried foods.

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4. Beverages: When you can, give water during meals and all day. Avoid sugary drinks. For children aged two and up, serve low- or non-fat milk and 4-6 ounces max of 100% juice a day.

5. Infant Feeding: Provide breast milk to infants of mothers who wish to breastfeed.

Do you have an active interagency collaboration on early care and education programs? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

What approaches are you using to promote the five goals of Let’s Move! Child Care to local early care and education (ECE) providers?

☐ Your city's, town's, or county's website.☐ Your city's, town's, or county's public service agency's newsletter.☐ A local elected official's press announcement.☐ A state of the city or state of the county address by a mayor or county executive.☐ City or county official statements supporting Let's Move! Child Care and encouraging participation by ECE providers. Local media stories and ads (television, newspapers, radio)☐ Visits made to local ECE providers.☐ Community events and other opportunities for ECE providers to sign up for Let's Move! Child Care.☐ Opportunities for public recognition of ECE providers who are implementing Let's Move! Child Care best practices.☐ I am not promoting the five goals of Let's Move! Child Care to ECE providers.

How many professional development trainings for early care and education providers do you provide per year?

How many incorporate the goals of Let’s Move! Child Care?

Goal II: MyPlate, Your PlaceMyPlate is the new United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) icon replacing the food pyramid to empower families and individuals to make healthy nutritious choices.

Are you familiar with the USDA MyPlate and the free resources available to communities? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

Are you currently a Community Partner with USDA for Choose MyPlate? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

How many municipally- or county-owned or operated venues do you have where food is offered or sold (i.e., city hall, parks and recreation, libraries, department of motor vehicles, police departments or fire stations, juvenile detention centers, or public medical facilities/clinics)?

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How many municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food are currently displaying MyPlate?

Goal III: Smart Servings for Students Municipal and county leaders have an important role to champion federal nutrition programs. The School Breakfast Program and National School Lunch Program are federally-assisted programs offered by USDA to provide balanced, low-cost or free meals. To help you complete this section, a potential resource for you may be your state education agency's child nutrition program director, which can be found by visiting: www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Contacts/StateDirectory.htm

Are you aware of the federally-assisted school breakfast and lunch programs? ☐ Yes ☐ No

Are you aware that providers of these programs can be reimbursed? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

How many public schools are in your jurisdiction? 

ElementaryMiddleHighTotal

How many students attend those public schools? 

ElementaryMiddleHighTotal

Are you currently working with schools to implement a school breakfast program? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

How many public schools participate in the school breakfast program? 

How many students currently participate in the school breakfast program?

Are you currently working with schools to implement a school lunch program? ☐ Yes ☐ No

How many students currently participate in the school lunch program? 

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ElementaryMiddleHighTotal

Goal IV: Model Food Service

Health and sustainability guidelines for food services can influence better food choices, improve the quality of food consumed, and create greater market demand for healthier foods.

 

Are you familiar with using food service guidelines as a strategy to promote health and sustainability? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

Are you aware of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans? (U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans are the standards used for federal food and education programs to help people choose an overall healthy diet.) ☐ Yes  ☐ No

Have you identified all the vendors and contractors for municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food and when contracts can be amended or renegotiated? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

Has your municipality or county finalized model food service guidelines that align with the standards of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans for municipal- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

What percentage of your municipally- or county-owned or operated venues implement food service guidelines that align with the standards of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans?

Goal V: Active Kids at PlayProviding safe, convenient places to play and be physically active can improve the health of residents, including reducing childhood obesity.

 

Are you familiar with KaBoom!'s tool to map your municipality's or county's playspaces? Note: playspaces are publicly accessible parks and recreation places (i.e., playgrounds, fields, skate parks). ☐ Yes  ☐ No

Have you mapped the playspaces in your community using KaBoom!’s tool or another tool? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

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Using the map of your playspaces, have you assessed the need for safe, convenient places to play and be physically active in your community, and developed a plan to address those needs? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

Have you implemented at least three actions to increase access to safe, convenient places to play and be physically active? ☐ Yes  ☐ No

☐ Joint use agreements☐ Recess policy in schools☐ Zoning ordinances☐ Strategies for walking and biking to school or work☐ Providing multi-modal transportation options☐ Creating or revitalizing parks and recreation facilities☐ Increasing the number of playgrounds☐ Periodic closing of public streets for play☐ Physical activity requirements for city- or county-funded youth programs☐ City Master Plan includes provisions to encourage walking and biking

General Question

What technical assistance do you think is most important for you as the municipality contact to be a successful Let’s Move! City, Town, and County? Please select all that apply:

☐ Online tool/community☐ Webinars☐ Newsletters☐ Site Visits☐ Models/templates☐ Access to subject matter experts☐ Other

Affirmation of Complete Survey

☐ I affirm I am completing this survey as the Let's Move! local elected official, or because my Let's Move! local elected official has empowered me to do so on his/her behalf

Permission to Use Data

Type Signature Here

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We would like to use the information you submitted, with your agreement, to highlight the progress your municipality is making over time. Please check the box below indicating you allow us to use your data for public purposes.

☐ I allow my lead person's name and email address to be displayed publicly for the purposes of local elected officials, their staff, or the public to directly learn more about our LMCTC activities from my lead person.

☐ I grant permission for the use of the data I provided in an aggregate fashion and for purposes of Let’s Move!, National League of Cities, or others determined appropriate, to highlight my municipality.

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C)Benefits of Participating in LMCTC HandoutBenefits of Participating in Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC)

Local elected officials who participate in LMCTC receive: recognition, technical assistance, best practices, and peer networking opportunities as members of a national movement to reduce childhood obesity.

National Movement: By joining LMCTC, local elected officials can be part of a national movement to build healthy communities for a healthy future.

National Recognition: LMCTC recognizes communities and showcases their success in promoting improved nutrition and physical activity through:

o Bronze, silver, and gold medals, which are awarded monthly to local elected officials who achieve one or more of the 5 specific, achievable LMCTC goals;

o Opportunities to be recognized by First Lady Michelle Obama;

o Templates and tools for highlighting local accomplishments in the media;

o Displaying the name and photo of the participating local elected official on the LMCTC website; and

o Showcasing local accomplishments on individual profile pages on the LMCTC website (for an example, see the community profile for Jackson, Miss.: http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/places/ - Lakewood, CO).

Technical Assistance and Best Practices: With funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the National League of Cities (NLC) provides tools and technical assistance to participating local elected officials and their staff, including:

o Access and coordinated assistance from national, regional and state experts, including federal agency officials and from nonprofit organizations;

o Information and resources on the LMCTC website;

o Webinars and newsletters on specific issues and challenges; and

Peer Networking: Local elected officials who join LMCTC can share success stories and discuss challenges with peers in other communities.

NLC is the lead collaborating partner of this initiative with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the National Association of Counties and other nonprofit organizations to assist local elected officials as they take steps to prevent childhood obesity. To sign up to participate or learn more, visit www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org.

D)

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D)Community Profile Page TemplateOverall Instructions:

This is a profile page template for you to share the incredible work you are doing and for others involved in this work to learn from their peers the various activities they have pursued. This template is a tool for you to collect your stories prior to submission. You will still need to login to your community profile page on www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org to enter and submit your information.

What you put on your community profile page is entirely up to you. However, we have provided guidance to create uniformity across profiles. Ideally, we would love for you to update your information when you have made progress in your work. We will send reminders quarterly to keep the information up to date, and we'll also send reminders for you to update your survey information, which is what we use to award and recognize you with medals.

Upon your submission, NLC will review the information to ensure it is consistent with the initiative. After that, it will be posted on www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org.

If you have any questions while filling out this community profile, please contact us at lmctc@nlc.org or call (202) 626-3012.

City, Town or County Fact:

Use this section to talk about a few public facts or unique features about your city, town or county. This may be your city's tag line, or a fact related to healthy eating and active living. 600 characters are allotted.

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Goals:

The goal section is designed to describe your activities as they correspond to the medals you have earned. If you’d like a reminder of the goals, please click here. The medals earned are directly tied to the survey information you provided. Fill in your information in the boxes below for each of the five goals of Let’s Move! Cities, Towns, and Counties.

Goal I: Start Early, Start Smart

Use this section to describe publicly what was critical for you to achieve your medal to date. 400 characters are allotted.

Use this section to describe publicly what the next steps are for you to achieve your next medal. If you have achieved gold, indicate what your efforts are to sustain your momentum. 200 characters are allotted.

Goal II: MyPlate, Your Place

Use this section to describe publicly what was critical for you to achieve your medal to date. 400 characters are allotted.

Use this section to describe publicly what the next steps are for you to achieve your next medal. If you have achieved gold, indicate what your efforts are to sustain your momentum. 200 characters are allotted.

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Goal III: Smart Servings for Students

Use this section to describe publicly what was critical for you to achieve your medal to date. 400 characters are allotted.

Use this section to describe publicly what the next steps are for you to achieve your next medal. If you have achieved gold, indicate what your efforts are to sustain your momentum. 200 characters are allotted.

Goal IV: Model Food Service

Use this section to describe publicly what was critical for you to achieve your medal to date. 400 characters are allotted.

Use this section to describe publicly what the next steps are for you to achieve your next medal. If you have achieved gold, indicate what your efforts are to sustain your momentum. 200 characters are allotted.

Goal V: Active Kids at Play

Use this section to describe publicly what was critical for you to achieve your medal to date. 400 characters are allotted.

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Use this section to describe publicly what the next steps are for you to achieve your next medal. If you have achieved gold, indicate what your efforts are to sustain your momentum. 200 characters are allotted.

Additional Efforts:

Use this section to publicly describe other actions you have taken to promote improved nutrition and increase physical activity. This could include other Let’s Move! efforts. 600 characters are allotted.

The Impact We’ve Made:

You have the opportunity to fill in two quotes illustrating the impact made by this work. The first one should be a quote from your local elected official on the impact made. The section should be a quote from someone in the community who has been positively impacted by the work done. Please include the name of the person giving the quote. 300 characters are allotted per quote.

First Quote:

Person giving Quote:

Second Quote:

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Person giving Quote:

Key Partners:

Insert the names of the partners who have actively participated in your LMCTC activities. The partners will be listed alphabetically.

Links:

Upload associated links for your LMCTC activities. Insert the title and the URL for the links in the boxes below. There is a limit of 5 links.

Link 1

Link 2

Link 3

Link 4

Link 5

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Uploads:

Photos:

Please include up to 6 photos of your LMCTC activities for display on your Community Profile Page.

Local Resources:

Please include resources critical in your LMCTC success. The format for these resources can only be PDF. For example, would you like to share the professional development curricula used to achieve Goal I? Do you want to share your model food policy for Goal IV? Would you want to share your action plan you created for Goal V?

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E)Success Story Submission Template*Please note: although this general form notes NLC as the person to submit it to, OASH Regional Staff can send this form and direct questions directly to Aisha Hasan at aisha.hasan@hhs.gov

Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and CountiesSuccess Story Submission

Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC) is looking to collect your success stories in achieving the goals of LMCTC and addressing childhood obesity in your community.

These stories will be used as unique opportunities arise to highlight the success of communities participating in LMCTC. These opportunities can include features on www.letsmove.gov and www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org, and at speaking engagements by senior federal officials and the leadership of the National League of Cities (NLC).

These stories are not in lieu of completing your medal status survey or community profile page on www.HealthyCommunitiesHealthyFuture.org. You must complete your medal status survey in order to be eligible to receive medals from NLC. We encourage you to complete your community profile page as a way to publicly share your experience so others can recognize and learn from your efforts. Additionally, your success story also has a greater chance of being featured if there is a completed community profile page we can link to.

We will periodically request success stories and ask that you use this template. Stories must address at least one LMCTC goal and one topic area as described in the instructions below. We will not accept submissions that do not adhere to this template. The LMCTC team is committed to promoting your achievements and we appreciate your participation in LMCTC.

LMCTC Local Elected Official:

LMCTC City/County, State:

LMCTC Point of Contact (name, telephone number, email):

Success Story Title:

LMCTC Goals:Instructions: Check all that apply for this story submission; stories must address at least one goal.

Goal 1: Start Early, Start Smart – To provide children with a healthier start, local elected officials commit to helping early care and education providers incorporate best practices for nutrition, physical activity and screen time into their programs.

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Goal 2: MyPlate, Your Place – To empower parents and caregivers, local elected officials commit to prominently displaying MyPlate in all municipally- or county-owned or operated venues where food is offered or sold.

Goal 3: Smart Servings for Students – To provide healthy food in schools, local elected officials commit to increasing participation in school breakfast and lunch programs.

Goal 4: Model Food Service – To improve access to healthy, affordable foods, local elected officials commit to implementing healthy and sustainable food service guidelines that are aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans at municipally- or county-owned or operated venues that serve food.

Goal 5: Active Kids at Play –To increase physical activity, local elected officials commit to mapping local playspaces, completing a needs assessment, developing an action plan, and implementing a minimum of three recommended policies, programs or initiatives.

Story Text Instructions:Stories cannot exceed 500 words. In your submission, please include what successes have been made, including relevant data, program, or policy updates, and what makes this story special or unique. Please also ensure that your story is timely or newsworthy, therefore we will offer multiple opportunities to submit stories. Consider what information may be helpful to other communities in achieving the goal(s). Stories must address at least one of the following topic areas:

Innovative approaches being used to achieve your success Barriers you faced and how you overcame them The role partners played in your success, including the business community,

community and faith-based organizations, or local museums, gardens or libraries

The role schools played in your success How agencies within your city/county government came together to

collaborate on LMCTC How your LMCTC efforts have been incorporated into or part of other

community health and wellness initiatives Achieved return on investment from your efforts

Pictures:Please attach any appropriate photos to accompany this story submission and provide permission for publication by the federal government and NLC.

*As a reminder, these stories are not in lieu of the medal status survey or community profile page, and we encourage you to complete both. If you have any questions about completing your medal status survey or community profile page, please contact Elena Hoffnagle at lmctc@nlc.org or 202-626-3012.*

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F) Welcome Email Template (in response to NLC’s initial email)

Hello <insert LEO name> and < insert point of contact name>,

As Elena mentioned, I am the Let’s Move! Advisor for U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Region <insert region number>, which includes the state of <insert state LEO resides>. I’m emailing to introduce myself as a regional resource available to you. As you move forward with implementing this initiative, please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!

In the future you can expect I’ll be in touch as I am made aware of resources that can be of assistance to you in implementing activities within <insert city/town/county name>. You can also look forward to correspondence from the Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC) team at the National League of Cities, including alerts about upcoming webinars and resources. For your convenience, below I’ve included information on a webinar noted within the LMCTC series that I think may be of interest to you as you begin to implement this initiative:

Archived LMCTC Webinar: I’ve Signed Up! Now What? This orientation webinar provides an overview of your next steps after joining LMCTC, including:

Overview of the five goals Tips for completing your medal status survey How to earn medals Resources and technical assistance available on the five LMCTC goals How to complete your community profile page Sharing your success and promoting your efforts locally

A recording of this webinar is available at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/recording/4306370684894426114

I look forward to working with you in the future!

Best,<Insert your name>

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G)Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties Community Assessment Tool

Let’s Move! <Insert municipality name> Activities <Insert Date>

Goal Activity Organization

Goal I: Start Early, Start SmartTo provide children with a healthier start, local elected officials should commit to encourage local early care and education providers to incorporate best practices for nutrition, physical activity and screen time into their programs.

Example: Nutrition and Physical Activity Education presentations, including MyPlate with Childcare and Daycare centers.

Laurent Bureau of HealthJane Doe

Goal II: MyPlate, My PlaceTo empower parents and caregivers, local elected officials should commit to prominently displaying MyPlate in all municipal or county venues where food is offered or sold.

Example: My Plate on display at City of Laurent Buildings

Example: Crozer My Plate ConceptLiterature is encouraged at all City health fairs

City of LaurentBureau of HealthJane Doe

Keystone CrozerJane Doe

Goal Activity/Partners to Engage Organization

Goal III: Smart Servings for StudentsTo provide healthy food in schools, local elected officials should commit to increasing participation in public schools’ breakfast and lunch programs.

Example: Currently working with Principle to incorporate more healthy food options within Middle School.

Brighten Middle SchoolJane Doe

Goal IV: Model Food ServiceTo improve access to healthy, affordable foods, local elected officials should commit to implementing healthy and sustainable food service guidelines that are aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans at municipal or county spaces that serve food.

Vending Machines have Healthy Snacks

City of LaurentBureau of HealthSara Carter

Goal V: Kids on the MoveTo increase physical activity, local elected officials should commit to mapping local play spaces, completing a needs assessment, developing an action plan, and implementing a minimum of three recommended policies, programs or initiatives aimed at increasing access to play.

Example: Triple E: Eat Exercise and Enjoy3 month program for Laurent Teens struggling with weight managementOctober 1 to December 19

Example: Community Health Initiative that provides walking and exercise groups, Zumba, and two lectures pertaining to healthy living per week. In addition, we have access to the Bennett Farm and Hillside Farm.

Example: There is a GIS mapping class within the MPH program. Maybe we could enlist a student for assistance, consider it an internship.

Example: Youth Amateur BoxingTargeting youth between ages 8 and 18

Smedley Wellness CenterJane Doe

Chester Housing AuthorityJohn Doe

Widner UniversityJane Doe

Laurent City of RecreationJohn Doe

Additional Activities/Resources Organization Van that seats 9-12 and two

drivers to drive that van

Three state-of-the-art computer labs with wireless internet,

Laurent Housing AuthorityJohn Doe

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surround sound, and 60" LCD screens at each site.

Volunteer Tax Income Assistance preparation (VITA) during the months of January - April.

Space, equipment and funding for a full vending operation for fresh produce and other food items at the Bennett Farm.

Social services and individual support through two social work interns from Temple.

Building Block newsletter for promoting activities

KeyStone Mercy OutreachLiterature is distributed at all possible health education opportunities.

Keystone MercyJane Doe

H)

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H) Draft Information for Regional LMCTC Calls

Email Template for engaging sites in initial discussion

Hello all,

You are receiving this email due to your participation in Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties (LMCTC) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Region <insert region number>. This region includes <insert all states within region>.

This email is to inform you of an upcoming call specific to cities, towns and counties engaged in LMCTC. This introductory call will provide opportunity to share successes and challenges when approaching the Let’s Move! initiative. It will also be opportunity to provide feedback to both regional and national partners associated with the initiative on how best they can assist in ensuring success in implementation of your community’s work.

Your participation in this call is greatly appreciated! Interested parties are encouraged to access our scheduling survey to provide their availability for participation. Please complete the scheduling survey by <insert date> . Finalized details pertaining to the call (including a date/time, call in number and agenda) will be provided during the week of <insert date>.  In the meantime, please feel free to contact me at <insert email> or <insert telephone number> if you have any questions.

Please note: the recipients of this invitation for engagement are those individuals noted as lead contact for various LMCTC in this region. This invitation was not sent to local elected/appointment officials, unless they were solely noted as contacts for their LMCTC; however, elected/appointed officials are welcome to participate as well and you should feel free to share this invitation with your leadership.

Again, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions about the information shared!

Best,<insert name>

**Please note: this template includes hyperlinking the words scheduling survey to a doodle poll.** All email recipients should be blind cc’d on this communication, thus ensuring the privacy of those included.

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Email Template for alerting sites of call time and draft agenda

Hello all,

A Let’s Move! Cities Towns and Counties (LMCTC) regional call is scheduled for <insert underlined date and time>. Although this call is not mandatory, we greatly appreciate your participation if your schedule permits! The forwarded email below details the nature of this call. Here are the conference call line details, followed by a meeting agenda:

Call in #: <insert information> Participant code: <insert code>

Agenda:I. IntroductionsII. What’s on Your Mind as a LMCTC Site?III. Technical AssistanceIV. Next Steps

We hope to have your participation next week! In the meantime, please let me know if you have any questions leading up to the dialogue!

Best,<insert name>

** This communication should also have all recipients blind cc’d** An option is to send this email as a response to the original email, thus creating an email trail of communication pertaining to this topic. Hence the above reference to the forwarded email below details the nature of this call** An outlook invitation can be sent out following this announcement.

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Draft call agenda with notes

I. Introductions (10 minutes)

II. What’s on Your Mind as a LMCTC site? (15 minutes)

This is an opportunity for you to talk to one another. Is there anything you would like to ask your peers for assistance on?

Have you had any challenges? Do you have suggestions on overcoming those challenges?

III. Technical Assistance (20 minutes)

Support we can provide:o Assistance with Surveyo Assistance with Community Profile Pageo Steps to Successo Educate your stakeholders o Gateway to informationo Promote your success

Questions for LMCTC sites:o How can we help?

IV. Next Steps (5 minutes)

Provide summary of feedback Ensure notes to call will be sent out Thoughts on frequency of call (suggest quarterly if feedback is minimal)

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I) Criteria for inviting VIP Guest SpeakersProtocol for inviting the First Lady

Regional staff should inform an LMCTC site who is seeking participation by the First Lady in one of their events that the office receives a large number of invitations and is unable to accept most of the invitations. Nevertheless, to request the First Lady participate in an event, an email request should be sent to firstladyscheduling@who.eop.gov with the following information:

Description of event: date, address, and highlighting the number of people who are projected to be in attendance (i.e. both kids participating and parents/folks in general attendance), the partners within the collaboration (i.e. specific schools, any community based organizations, etc.), the media who has been invited and the other high profiled people who will be in attendance.

Provide an agenda for the day’s activities (i.e. start time for set up, time attendees are scheduled to arrive, time VIPs are scheduled to arrive, what time the event kicks off, who speaks, for how long, etc.) Note where they would feature the First Lady within the agenda as “special guest”

Point out within the email that if she is available to partake her participation would be to do blank at blank time for blank long. You also want to refer the reader to the agenda “for more information on the event schedule” and point out that the FLOTUS role, if available to participate, is noted as “special guest”.

Provide a Point of Contact for the day’s event, including cell phone. If you create an agenda and attach it to the email, note the POC in that document. Also include specifically where it is that speakers are to report to (i.e. the address may be a park but where at the park should people be meeting the POC specifically).

Sell yourself as a LMCTC. One suggestion is to highlight your medal status and say that you are looking forward to having your Community Profile Featured on the League of Cities LMCTC website.

It is best to state the most important information at the start of the correspondence (i.e. you request her participation at the event, general details of the event, followed by specific details pertaining to her involvement) then provide justification for the request (i.e. more detailed information on the program specifically and other Let’s Move! information specific to the municipality making the request).

Protocol for inviting a representative from the President’s Council of Fitness Sports and Nutrition (PCFSN)

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A speaker request form can be found here: http://wcdapps.hhs.gov/FitnessGovSpeakingRequest/ . Suggest an LMCTC site note the name of the HHS Let’s Move! Advisor within the Additional Notes section of the form. Please alert Sarah Shrimplin at sarah.shrimplin@hhs.gov once a request has been submitted and she will alert PCFSN of the inquiry.

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J) Examples of successful implementation of LMCTC

Spotlight on Setting Priorities

The City and County of Missoula, MT have set priorities for their Let’s Move! Missoula efforts with input from a wide range of community partners and stakeholders. In September 2012, Missoula held a Summit to Prevent Childhood Obesity with over 200 community members and five experts. From the Summit, fifteen prioritized suggestions, aligned with the five LMCTC goals, were brought to the table, creating a path for the next couple of years. The group also identified topics and key stakeholders to

Spotlight on Involving Youth

Bladensburg, MD has closely involved local teens, including members of the Port Towns Youth Council, in the development of a Pedestrian Safety Policy and a community asset mapping project to assess healthy food access, walkability, and bikability. Mayor Walter James sees having youth involved in the policymaking process as a way to make youth invested in staying

How LMCTC sites have launched their Let’s Move! Efforts:

Lincoln, NE Mayor Chris Beutler held a launch event where he announced the city’s commitment, designated a Let’s Move! Spokesperson, and set goals for the city.

South Bend, IN Mayor Pete Buttigieg held an exercise assembly at a local school with the School Superintendent and other Let’s Move! partners.

Spotlight on Marketing and Branding:

Under the leadership of Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine, Columbia, SC has gotten the word out to all residents about their Let’s Move! efforts. Communications used include Twitter, local TV shows, and a monthly Let’s Move! newsletter featuring recipes, event ideas, parks and recreation programs, and healthy living tips. The City has also branded related city programs as Let’s Move! activities such as a basketball camp, Kid’s Cooking Classes, and a Back to School Zumba Luau. The City also holds a variety of Let’s Move! events to engage city residents including Game Days and Community Bike Rides.

Community Profile Pages you may want to consult as examples:

Lakewood, CO:http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/places/#Lakewood%2CCO

Saratoga, CA:http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/places/#Saratoga%2CCA

Missoula County, MT:

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K) Frequently Used Resources for Goal Implementation

Goal I: Start Early, Start Smart

Let’s Move! Childcare General Website: http://www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/welcome.html

Let’s Move! Childcare Resources for Trainers:http://www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/home/resources/trainers.html

Let’s Move! Childcare Checklist:http://www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/filebox/letsmove/childcareclist.pdf

Goal II: Goal II: MyPlate, Your Place

MyPlate Community Partner Sign Uphttp://www.choosemyplate.gov/partnerships/communitypartners.aspx

Let’s Move! MyPlate graphic resources:  http://www.choosemyplate.gov/print-materials-ordering/graphic-resources.html

MyPlate materials for download:  http://www.choosemyplate.gov/print-materials-ordering.html

Order additional MyPlate materials here:  http://www.choosemyplate.gov/print-materials-ordering/order-online.aspx

Goal III: Smart Services for Students

General Website on the National School Lunch Program: http://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp/national-school-lunch-program-nslp

The USDA School Breakfast Toolkit: http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Breakfast/expansion/default.htm

Goal IV: Goal IV: Model Food Service

Federal guidance on food service language: http://www.gsa.gov/portal/content/104429 http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/guidelines/food-service-guidelines.htm

ChangeLab Solutions Guide to Healthy Vending for Municipalitieshttp://changelabsolutions.org/publications/healthier-vending-municipalities

Goal V: Active Kids at Play

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KaBOOM! website: http://kaboom.org/

L) LMCTC Shared SiteThere will be a drop box or shared site created, for utilization by all OASH regional staff, in the near future. These resources will be available to ensure all publications and resources are up to date and available for distribution. Documents included, but not limited to:

Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties Brochure Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties Flyer Benefits of Participation PDF LMCTC General Description PDF Blank Survey Community Profile Template in Word and PDF format Success Stories Template Draft Email Templates for the following:

o Welcome emailo Congratulation for medals emailso Regional Call emails

Regional Call agenda and notes Additional Resources for goal implementation Document

M) About the National League of Cities

The National League of Cities (NLC) is dedicated to helping city leaders build better communities. Working in partnership with the 49 state municipal leagues, NLC serves as a resource and an advocate for the more than 19,000 cities, villages and towns that it represents.

The Institute for Youth, Education, and Families (YEF Institute), a special entity within NLC, helps municipal leaders take action on behalf of the children, youth, and families in their communities. The YEF Institute is a national resource, providing guidance and assistance to municipal officials, compiling and disseminating information on promising strategies and best practices, building networks of local officials working on similar issues and concerns, and conducting research on the key challenges facing municipalities in five core program areas: early childhood success, education and afterschool, youth development, safety of children and youth, and family economic success.

Since 2005, NLC has supported municipal leadership to prevent childhood obesity through site-level technical assistance, opportunities for peer learning and exchange, and dissemination of promising practices. In May 2012, NLC received funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to provide technical assistance

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to local elected officials creating healthier communities and preventing childhood obesity, including sites participating in Let’s Move! Cities, Towns and Counties.

To learn more about NLC, visit www.nlc.org.

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