Making The Healthy Choice The Easy Choice in Schools

Making the Healthy Choice the Easy Choice in Schools!
Written and Developed by Project PA Claudia Probart Ph.D., R.D. Elaine McDonnell M.S., R.D., L.D.N. J. Elaine Weirich M.Ed. Charles J. Orlofsky B.A.
Penn State Department of Nutritional Sciences College of Health and Human Development
Patricia Birkenshaw M.A. Vonda Fekete M.S., R.D., L.D.N. Cheryl Oberholser M.S., R.D., L.D.N.
Pennsylvania Department of Education Division of Food and Nutrition Bureau of Budget and Fiscal Management
A collaboration between Penn State Department of Nutritional Sciences and the Pennsylvania Department of Education
Project PA | A collaboration between Penn State Department of Nutritional Sciences and the Pennsylvania Department of Education 2006
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Table of Contents
Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 School Markets: Making Fruits and Vegetables the Easy Choice! . . . . . . . . . 3 Milk Vending Machines: Making Milk the Easy Choice! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Pricing Strategies to Help Students Make the Healthy Choice!. . . . . . . . . . . 13 Challenging Students to Make the Healthy Choice! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Involving Students to Encourage Healthy Choices! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Evaluating Your Environmental Nutrition Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Tips for Success in Implementing an Environmental Nutrition Strategy . . . . 29 Environmental Nutrition Strategies Schools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
This project was funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and federal Team Nutrition funds from the U. S. Department of Agriculture.
Copyright, 2006. Pennsvlvania Department of Education This publication is available in alternative media on request. Penn State is committed to afrmative action, equal opportunity, and the diversity of its workforce. U.Ed 07 26
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Background
Childhood Obesity Childhood obesity has reached an alarming level, with recent reports indicating that 17% of children and adolescents are overweight.1 This level represents a signicant increase since the late 1970s. Childhood overweight is cause for concern because of its association with high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, diabetes and psychosocial problems in childhood as well as increased risk for chronic disease in adulthood.2 Food choices of most US children do not meet current dietary recommendations, with children consuming less than the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables.3, 4, 5 Recent data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that only 20% of teenagers eat ve or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day and only 16% drink three or more glasses of milk a day.6 More than two-thirds of children exceed the recommended intake for fat and saturated fat.3 Role for Schools Schools are in a unique position to address childrens eating habits and be instrumental in efforts to reduce childhood obesity because of the signicant amount of time that children spend in school and the number of children enrolled in schools. Schools can impact childrens eating habits through the foods offered in schools, classroom health education, and the messages students receive throughout the school environment.7 With the passage of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004, local education agencies are required to establish wellness policies to address childhood obesity. These policies were required to include goals for nutrition education, physical activity, and other school-based programs to address student wellness, as well as establish nutrition guidelines for foods offered in schools during the school day. Environmental Nutrition Strategies The success of the wellness policies may depend on the extent to which schools are able to make changes that make healthy options the easy choice for students. These environmental changes, which usually involve alterations in promotion, price, access, or availability of healthy options, have shown promise in altering students purchasing behavior.8
Project Project PA PA |A | collaboration A collaboration between between Penn Penn State State Universitys Department Department of Nutritional of Nutritional Sciences Sciences and and the Pennsylvania the Pennsylvania Department Department of of Education Education 2006 2006
In Pennsylvania, through a mini-grant program funded by the United States Department of Agricultures Team Nutrition program, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and administered through Project PA at Penn State, fteen schools implemented a variety of environmental strategies to improve students food choices. These strategies included school markets, introduction of milk vending machines, pricing strategies, and other creative approaches to encourage healthier choices. The following materials describe each of these strategies with specic examples of the implementation of these strategies in the mini-grant schools. For additional information about school nutrition environments, access the following Web site and research report: USDAs Healthy Schools website: <teamnutrition.usda.gov/healthy-schools.html>. This site explains USDAs Healthy School Nutrition Environments Initiative and provides access to free materials such as Changing the Scene - Improving the School Nutrition Environment and Making it Happen! School Nutrition Success Stories. French S. and Wechsler H. School-based research and initiatives: fruit and vegetable environment, policy, and pricing workshop. Preventive Medicine 39 (2004) S101-S107. <www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MImg&_imagekey=B6WPG-4BDM2P4-2-1&_cdi=6990&_ user=209810&_orig=search&_coverDate=09%2F30%2F2004&_qd=1&_sk=999609999.8997&vi ew=c&wchp=dGLzVlz-zSkzS&md5=98ddcb8e1afc74922f61ec8a8cd847ff&ie=/sdarticle.pdf>. References: 1 Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Curtin LR, McDowell MA, Tabak CJ, Flegal KM. Prevalence of overweight and obesity in the United States, 1999-2004. JAMA. 2006;295:1549-1555. 2 Dietz WH. Health consequences of obesity in youth: childhood predictors of adult disease. Pediatrics. 1998;101:518-525. 3 Wilson JAW, Enns CS, Goldman JD. Data tables: Combined Results from USDAs 1994 and 1995 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes of Individuals (serial online). 1998. Available at: <www.barc. usda.gov/bhnrc/foodsurvey/home.htm>. (Accessed March 24, 2006.) 4 Munoz KA, Krebs-Smith SM, Ballard-Barbash R, Cleveland LE. Food intakes of U. S. children and adolescents compared with recommendations. Pediatrics. 1997;100:323-329. 5 Kirby S, Baranowski T, Reynolds K, Taylor G, Binkley D. Childrens fruit and vegetable intake: socioeconomic, adult child, regional and urban-rural inuences. J Nutr Educ. 1995;27:261-271. 6 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance - United States, 2005. Surveillance Summaries, June 9, 2006, MMWR2006;55 (No.SS-5). 7 Story M. School-based approaches for preventing and treating obesity. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 1999 Mar;23 Suppl 2:S43-51. 8 French S. and Wechsler H. School-based research and initiatives: fruit and vegetable environment, policy, and pricing workshop. Preventive Medicine. 39 (2004) S101-S107.
School Markets: Making Fruits and Vegetables the Easy Choice!

Developed by The Food Trust, and rst introduced in schools in the Philadelphia area, the School Market program encourages students to improve their eating habits, helps them to develop management and entrepreneurial skills, and educates them about issues that affect their health and the health of their communities. Through the program, students create, own, and operate markets in their schools, through which they sell fruit and vegetable products to students and teachers. Students are responsible for management of the markets, including ordering and preparing food, calculating prices, choosing location, and developing promotional materials and marketing strategies. In Pennsylvania, through a mini-grant program funded by the United States Department of Agricultures Team Nutrition program, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and administered through Project PA at Penn State, two schools introduced school markets. These schools were Mt. Carmel Elementary school in the Mt. Carmel Area School District and Colfax Spanish Academy in the Pittsburgh School District. Following are steps to follow and issues to consider in implementing a School Market modied from The Food Trusts How to Start a Healthy Food Market with examples interspersed from the experiences of the two mini-grant schools. 1. Gain support for the market. Be sure that your school administration supports the market idea and understands and approves of the plan for operating the market. In order to avoid competing with the school meals programs, connect with your school foodservice director to determine the location and operating hours for the market. At Mt. Carmel Area School District, the foodservice director became an integral part of the team. Produce for the market was ordered through the school foodservice department. 2. Assess funding needs. The Food Trust estimates that $500 is needed to start a school market. In addition to a market stand, or materials to build a market stand, examples of supplies needed for the market include aprons, gloves, hairnets, storage containers, garbage bags, napkins, paper towels, plastic utensils (if applicable), cash box, notebook to record sales, dishwashing detergent, dishrags, cutting boards, and plastic bowls (if applicable.) Sources of start-up funds may include local businesses or a parent/ teacher association. Building the market stand could be a project for an Industrial Arts class. Seek donations of items from parents and local businesses. Consider a school fundraiser to generate the start-up funds. 3. Assess the timing and location of the market. School markets can operate any time and for as long as you choose. Discuss with your administrators the location and timing of the school market. Mt. Carmel Areas School Market operated approximately twice a month. Colfax Spanish Academys School Market operated three to four times per month. Because of the limitations of the facilities at the Colfax Spanish Academy, a physical market was not set up. Instead, pre-orders were taken for fruits and vegetables and they were delivered to the classrooms on the designated day.
Project PA | A collaboration between Penn State Universitys Department of Nutritional Sciences and the Pennsylvania Department of Education 2006
4. Assess student responsibilities. Which students will be responsible for managing the School Market? Both Mt. Carmels and Colfax Spanish Academys School Markets operated at the elementary school level. However, Mt. Carmel used high school students to manage the market. Colfax Spanish Academy delegated this responsibility to 6th and 7th grade students. Teams of students assumed distinct responsibilities. The peer education teams duties were to format a weekly newsletter to include order forms for fruits and vegetables. The marketing teams responsibilities were to survey the school community about products to sell, research suppliers, and design templates to record the amount of product ordered and sold. A nance team was established to keep track of sales and expenses using Excel spreadsheets and to design order forms. The food preparation teams duties were to learn about safely preparing, cleaning, and storing foods. Lastly, the sales team was responsible for displaying the food attractively and ordering the needed supplies. 5. Train the students. The students who will be managing the market will need training in a variety of areas. Depending on the level of responsibility allocated to the students, these topic areas may include safe food handling practices, customer service, marketing, and managing nances. 6. Determine items to sell and price of the items. Surveying your customers regarding items they would like to purchase can help you make this decision. However, plan to offer some unusual or more exotic items that students may have never tried to expose them to new fruits and vegetables. Colfax Spanish Academy conducted a student survey, as well as a taste-testing event, to gather feedback on student likes and dislikes. You can also assess how much students are willing to pay for the snacks through the survey. Check out prices for these items at local businesses and communicate with your foodservice director to help in setting your prices. Mt. Carmels and Colfax Spanish Academys prices ranged from $.25-$.50 per serving. 7. Find a vendor. Your school foodservice director should be able to help you identify a vendor. Consider local farms as sources of produce. The schools participating in this project were encouraged to use Pennsylvania produce. See page 7 for a list of Pennsylvania produce indicating when each fruit and vegetable is in season. 8. Generate enthusiasm for the market. Let the school community know about the School Market plans. Colfax Spanish Academy sent a newsletter to parents to promote the market. They also held a Name the Market contest. Mt. Carmel conducted taste-testing events to orient students to the market, held a Healthy Choice parade which included fruit and vegetable oats, and decorated the school Christmas tree with fruits and vegetables. 9. Provide education and promotional events to reinforce the healthy messages. The School Market is an ideal venue for students to put into practice the messages that they are learning about healthy eating in the classroom. For sources of reliable nutrition information related to fruits and vegetables, check out the following Web sites: Market Place for the Mind <www.marketplaceforthemind.state.pa.us>. This is an educational resource developed by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, in
cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Education, through which you can nd educational materials aligned to Pennsylvanias Academic Standards, as well as a variety of information about Pennsylvania agriculture. Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Network (PANEN) <panen.psu.edu/snap/index.html>. On this site, each month one vegetable is featured with materials covering nutrition and health benets, growing, market selection, preparation, and educational activities. These free materials include newsletter inserts, bookmarks, yers, table tents, recipes, shopping guide, recipes and more. The various materials are provided in easy-to-download PDF les, which can be used alone or combined with other educational materials. USDAs MyPyramid site <www.mypyramid.gov>. This is the ofcial site for the federal governments new food guidance system. It is an interactive site with links for consumers and professionals and downloadable educational materials. USDA Team Nutrition (Resources Section) <teamnutrition.usda.gov/library.html>. A variety of free resources related to healthy eating are accessible through this site. Resources are categorized by audience: foodservice professionals, educators, parents, and child care providers. USDA Eat Smart, Play Hard <www.fns.usda.gov/eatsmartplayhard/>. The Eat Smart, Play Hard Web site contains background information and promotional materials for this national campaign to promote nutritious eating and encourage physical activity in children and their families. Materials include bookmarks, parent brochures, child activity sheets, public service announcements and more. The campaign is administered by the Food and Nutrition Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Dole 5-A-Day: <www.dole5aday.com/>. This site provides materials that teach the importance of eating ve fruits and vegetables every day. Materials for teachers include a newsletter, a kids cookbook, a fruit and vegetable encyclopedia, lesson plans with cross-curricular activities, and more. 10. Evaluate the success of your school market. Evaluation can help you to make adjustments to the operation of the school market as well as document a successful program and ensure sustainability. Consider surveying students throughout the operation of the market to determine changing preferences. Perhaps a suggestion box would allow students to offer suggestions for items they would like to see offered. Try offering items in different forms (whole, sliced, in a recipe, etc.) and tracking sales to determine preferences. Work with other teachers to assess changes in students knowledge and attitudes related to fruits and vegetables. Mt. Carmel and Colfax Spanish Academy tracked sales of items and revenue generated through their School Markets. In addition, they tracked sales of fruits and vegetables through their school lunch programs, average daily participation in school lunch, and a la carte revenue to determine if the school market was having any effect on school lunch participation and revenue. At Mt. Carmel, initially sales averaged 900 items per School Market, an impressive amount given the schools enrollment of 900 students. During the nal two months of the markets operation, sales averaged approximately 1800 items, reaching a high of 2100 items at the nal market of the school year. Because Mt. Carmel chose to sell items at cost, or only slightly above cost, prots through the market were minimal. Colfax Spanish Academy, with a much smaller enrollment (approximately 500 students), sold an average of approximately 100 items through their School Market each time it operated during the initial months of operation. During the last ve months of the school year, the market sustained a 30% increase in sales, and total prots through the school market were approxiProject PA | A collaboration between Penn State Department of Nutritional Sciences and the Pennsylvania Department of Education 2006
mately $900. Analysis of the school meals data from both schools showed no negative effects on school lunch participation or revenue. For additional information about School Markets including the How to Start a Healthy Food Market manual, access the Web site of The Food Trust at: <www.thefoodtrust.org>.
When to Buy Fresh Pennsylvania Fruits and Vegetables

Apples ................................Aug. Oct. Asparagus ...........................Apr. Jun. Beets ..................................Jun. Dec. Broccoli (early) .................... Jun. Jul. Broccoli (late) .....................Aug. Nov. Brussel Sprouts ..................Aug. Nov. Cabbage (early) ..................Jun. Aug. Cabbage (late) ............................ Sept. Carrots .............................. May May Sept. Cauliower (early) ................ Jun. Jul. Cauliower (late) ................Sept. Nov. Celery (early) ....................... Jul. Aug. Celery (late) ..................................Oct. Cucumbers.......................... Jul. Oct. Eggplant............................. Jun. Oct. Grapes ....................................... Sept. Lettuce ................................May May Oct. May Lima Beans ......................... Jul. Oct. Mushrooms ....................... Year Round Nectarines ........................ Aug. Sept. Onions ................................ Jul. Aug. Peaches .............................. Jul. Sept. Pears ..................................Aug. Oct. Peas ....................................May May Jun. May Peppers ............................... Jul. Oct. Plums ............................... Aug. Sept. Potatoes .............................Aug. Oct. Pumpkins ..........................Sept. Nov. Radishes ............................. May May Aug. Raspberries......................... Jul. Sept. Shell Beans ........................Aug. Oct. Snap Beans ........................ Jun. Oct. Sour Cherries ............................... July Spinach ......................May, Jun., Sept. Strawberries ................................ June Summer Squash ................ Jun. Oct. Sweet Cherries .................... Jun. Jul. Sweet Corn (early) .............. Jul. Sept. Sweet Corn (late) ................ Jul. Sept. Sweet Potatoes ................. Aug. Sept. Tomatoes ...........................Aug. Oct. Turnips ............ Jan., Feb., Sept. Dec. Winter Squash .................. Sept. Dec.
These dates may vary due to various conditions. Check with the growers in your area. Source: A Consumers Guide to Pennsylvania Farm Markets 2006 Pennsylvania Department Agriculture. <www.agriculture.state.pa.us/agriculture/lib/agriculture/marketsles/Consumers_Guide_PAMarkets.pdf#search=%22consumers%20guid e%20to%20Pennsylvania%20farm%20markets%22>. (Accessed 8/23/06.)
Milk Vending Machines: Making Milk the Easy Choice!

Carbonated beverages are replacing milk in the diets of young people. Only 21% of teen-aged boys and 12% of teen-aged girls drink the recommended three glasses of milk per day. Nearly seven out of ten teen-aged boys and nine out of ten teen-aged girls do not meet the recommended intake of calcium. One cup of milk (skim, lowfat, or whole) provides 30% of the Daily Value for calcium along with Vitamin D, protein, and other nutrients. Soda provides calories with no vitamins or minerals. This trend of decreasing milk consumption and increasing soft drink consumption is causing concern related to the bone health of young people, both now and in the future. A study suggests a link between soft drink consumption and bone fractures.1 The potential for increasing rates of osteoporosis as the current generation of youngster ages into adulthood and later life is cause for concern. Osteoporosis is often called a pediatric disease with geriatric consequences. Bone formation occurs during the pediatric years, the rst two decades of life. Calcium is an important nutrient in this process of bone formation. Therefore, it is critical for youngsters to maintain an adequate intake of calcium in order to develop strong bones. Later in life, calcium is drawn from the bones, causing weakening of bones and sometimes leading to brittle bones and a condition known as osteoporosis. If strong bones have not been developed early in life, the risk for osteoporosis and fractured bones is potentially increased. In School Year 2001/2002, the National Dairy Council and the School Nutrition Association sponsored the School Milk Pilot Test. The purpose of this work was to test the effects of measures taken to improve the attractiveness of uid milk products offered to students in elementary and secondary schools. The study was conducted in 146 schools representing 18 school districts in different parts of the country. The major ndings of this pilot test were that students would purchase milk in school if it is (1) packaged attractively in contemporary plastic containers, (2) served ice-cold, (3) offered in a variety of avors, and (4) made highly visible. These ndings serve as the basis for promoting milk vending machines in schools as a method to encourage milk consumption among young people. In Pennsylvania, through a mini-grant program funded by the United States Department of Agricultures Team Nutrition program, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and administered through Project PA at Penn State University, two schools introduced milk vending machines. These schools were McKeesport High School in the McKeesport Area School District and Southside Middle/Senior High School in the Southside School District. Following are issues to consider in introducing a milk vending machine taken from and modied from the Mid-Atlantic Dairy Associations Web site with examples interspersed from the experiences of the two mini-grant schools. Responsibilities Consider who will be responsible for placing milk orders, arranging for storage of milk, stocking the machine, collecting the cash from the machine and managing accounting procedures, assuring that preventative maintenance occurs, repairing the machine, and ensuring that the milk in the machine remains at the proper temperature.
Financial Issues A variety of business models exist for operation of the machine. Each model varies in the level of responsibility for the machine assumed by the school district. In the Vending Operator model, an independent vending machine owner and operator purchases the machines, installs them and handles restocking and maintenance. In the Processor Full Service model, a dairy processor purchases and services the machine. The Processor/School Cooperative model involves a leasing arrangement where the dairy leases the machine and the school pays a surcharge for the milk to cover the lease expense. The School Self-Operation model assumes the school purchases the machine and takes responsibility for stocking and servicing the machine. The pros and cons of each of these models in described on the Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association website (www.dairyspot. com). This website also provides access to a milk-vending calculator in Microsoft Excel format. By entering unit cost, and either lease amount per month or purchase price for the machine, the calculator allows the user to identify the units per week that should be sold to reach a break-even point. By entering additional data, the calculator allows the user to determine weekly and annual prots. Financial support for the purchase of vending machines is traditionally available through Dairy Council afliates. These grants supplement the cost of the machine. Both McKeesport and Southside took advantage of this funding opportunity. Currently (Summer 2006) the Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association has vending grants of $2,000 available. Interested schools are required to complete a pre-approval form and vending application form and submit proof of purchase of a milk vending machine. Check out the Mid-Atlantic Association Web site at www.DairySpot.com and click on Vending for more information. For more information about this funding opportunity, you may also contact: Carolyn Weaver (Nutrition Education and Marketing Specialist, Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association) at 717-486-8590 or cweaver@milk4u.org. The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture may also be able to help schools obtain low-interest loans to fund the purchase of milk vending machines. For more information about this option, contact: Cheryl L. Cook, Esq. Deputy Secretary for Marketing and Economic Development Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture 2301 N. Cameron Street Harrisburg, PA 17110 717-783-2059 (phone) 717-346-1971 (fax) e-mail: checook@state.pa.us A nal nancial consideration to discuss prior to introducing the machine is to determine how the prots from the vending machine will be used. If the machine was purchased by the school, it is likely that the initial prots will go towards covering the cost of the machine. In its rst year in operation, prots from the milk vending machine at McKeesport High School are estimated at more than $3000. The introduction of the milk vending machine did not appear to negatively affect sales of milk in the cafeteria or participation in school lunch. Communication Issues Before introducing a milk vending machine, investigate whether or not this requires school board or administrative approval. Communicate with teachers and encourage them to take advantage of the opportunity to incorporate education about healthy beverages into their curriculum. Contact
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your school foodservice director and let him/her know about your interest in introducing a milk vending machine. He/She may be able to provide information about vendors, offer storage space for milk, and suggest a location for the vending machine. At both McKeesport and Southside, the school foodservice directors assumed primary responsibility for the milk vending machines. Finally, communicate with parents and students about the introduction of the milk vending machine. The Southside team installed Got Milk bulletin boards in the cafeteria, printed milk trivia information and an announcement about the milk vending machine on the school lunch menu, and published an article about the machine in the school newspaper. At McKeesport High school, at the start of the school year signage was placed around the empty milk vending machine to build interest and curiosity. Signage included slogans such as, MOOve over Pepsi and MOOving into McKeesport. Later, a poster contest was held to promote the milk machine and to kick off its grand opening. The winning poster was displayed on the machine until the grand opening. Tips for Success Choose a well-traveled location for placement of the milk vending machine and make it; to students for as much time per day as possible. Be sure the machine is not unplugged in order to maintain proper temperature. The milk should be kept below 41 degrees Fahrenheit at all times. Keep the machine well-stocked, clean, and in good operating condition. Set the price of milk to be comparable with other beverage prices. Closely monitor the expiration dates on milk in the milk vending machine to be sure that the products are fresh. Keep sales up by conducting regular promotions. Contact your local Dairy Council afliate for assistance, information, and resources. Promotions and Education Place stickers or other form of marking on selected milk containers. Students purchasing the marked bottles redeem them for a prize. McKeesport implemented this type of promotion, with the winners receiving $25 toward the purchase of tickets to a school semi-formal dance. Hold a poster or slogan contest to promote the machine. Enlist the help of parents and teachers to encourage students to choose milk instead of less healthy beverages. This could be done through newsletters, morning announcements, presentations at parent/teacher association meetings, or messages on the school lunch menu or school district website. McKeesport provided education on the importance of milk consumption primarily through the Health curriculum. They used materials from the National Dairy Council Web site <www.nationaldairycouncil.org> and the Dannon Web site <www.dannon.com>, and used an on-line Calcium calculator <www.osteoporosis.ca/english/about%20osteoporosis/ calcium%20calculator/default.asp?s=1> to determine their calcium needs. Hold contests related to the importance of milk consumption. Southside held a Cook-Off contest featuring recipes using milk. Alter prices to encourage students to try a variety of milk products. In conjunction with the NCAA college basketball playoffs (March Madness), McKeesport held their own March MILK Madness. During each week of the playoffs, the price of a different avor of milk was reduced by $0.25. At the end of the month one of the milk avors was crowned champion based on machine sales.
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Conduct taste-testing activities to determine student preferences and to introduce students to the milk products. Both Southside and McKeesport held taste-testing events. McKeesport held a tastetesting event at the beginning of the school day. Students donning milk mustaches and students dressed in cow costumes served samples of avored milk to students as they entered the school building. Use student role models to help promote milk. At McKeesport High school, football players and cheerleaders were recruited to assist with the promotional activities and serve as peer role models. The McKeesport Area High School football team won the state football championship in their division. The grant team decided to use positive attention that the football players were receiving to promote milk consumption. They contracted with a local billboard company to photograph senior members of the football team donning milk mustaches and holding their state championship trophy. This photograph was made into billboards with the tag line, State Champions Drink Milk. The billboards were placed at bus stops throughout the town and posters depicting the same image were placed in each of the school districts seven buildings. Resources Related to Milk and Milk Vending: National Dairy Council The National Dairy Council Web site <www.nationaldairycouncil.org/> provides information about the benets of milk and other dairy products, nutrition education resources available to schools, information about milk vending, and links to related sites. Milkdelivers.org This Web site provides information for schools including a promotions calendar, a milk brochure with tips for making lunch lines, a la carte lines, breakfast, and afterschool programs more successful with milk, and information about milk vending including how vending can contribute to meeting the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 recommendation that students be given wide access to milk throughout the school day. Soft Drinks and School Age Children This module, developed by the North Carolina School Nutrition Action Committee, explores trends in consumption of soft drinks by school-age children, the health consequences of excessive consumption and possible strategies for change. There is a Power Point presentation, a white paper on the topic and supporting materials for implementing change. It can be accessed at: <www.nutritionnc.com/TeamNutrition/SoftDrink(8-19).pdf>. Web site addresses of National Dairy Council afliates in Pennsylvania: American Dairy Association & Dairy Council Mid East: <www.drink-milk.com>. Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association: www.dairyspot.com Source: Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association Web site: <www.dairyspot.com>. Reference: 1 Wyshak G. Teenaged Girls, Carbonated Beverage Consumption, and Bone Fractures. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. 2000. 154:610-613.
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Pricing Strategies to Help Students Make the Healthy Choice!

Are students in the upper elementary and middle grades sensitive to the prices that they must pay for a la carte foods? Can the choice of more healthful foods be encouraged by lowering their prices while raising the prices of less healthful foods? Through a mini-grant program funded by the United States Department of Agricultures Team Nutrition program, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and administered through Project PA at Penn State University, two schools in Pennsylvania participated in a case study to determine what happens when pricing is altered to encourage students to choose more healthful snacks. These schools were Lehman Intermediate School in the East Stroudsburg Area School District and Washington Elementary School in the Boyertown Area School District. Both schools started the project by assessing what snacks students liked and what snacks were currently on the market that would be considered more healthful. Five healthful snacks were targeted for price reductions or rst time introduction with lower prices, and ve less healthful snacks were picked for price increases. The managers at both schools worked with the Project PA team to arrive at prices that would allow the schools to breakeven based on the popularity of items. For example, at one school the price of French fries was doubled at the beginning of the school year to discourage consumption. It was anticipated that the increased prot from the fries (even though fewer fries were sold) would still offset the revenue lost by reducing the price for yogurt and fresh fruit parfait, for example, which sold at a price to just recover the food cost but not the labor involved. At the beginning of the year no promotions were conducted or changes in behavior were made by the school foodservice staff for the rst few weeks to see the sole effect of pricing. After that point, the project teams at both schools offered promotions for healthful snacks and had award programs for students who chose the healthful snacks. So what can we learn from the experiences? Did price make a difference? The answer is maybe. It did initially, especially with items such as French fries and large sugar cookies, and the effect was to sell less-at least initially. But the maybe might be related to whether students interest in more healthful snacks could be initiated and maintained. This took more effort than just price-promotions and incentives to purchase healthful snacks seemed to help. Once the promotions were over, less of the healthful snacks were sold. Also related is whether parents put their children on a budget for snacks or provided additional funds as needed. In the latter situation, students can easily fall back into their old habits after an initial sticker shock. For example with French fries, one student always had $3 and used it everyday to buy three portions of French fries (which had doubled in price). One has to wonder what would have happened if his budget for snacks had been lower. Economists say that consumers always will make choices in their best interest-including ones related to price. But in the instance of school nutrition a la carte offerings, children arent spending their own money, but funds provided by their parents. In this instance, rational economic behavior may not always come into play-especially when students are more accustomed to the less healthful items. Positive outcomes related to the project were that students enjoyed being involved in the decision-making process of choosing what healthful snacks to offer. Surveys and taste-testing were used to gather student feedback. Students seemed to learn about the foods that contribute to nutritious snacking. Also, no revenue was lost by the cafeterias reducing the price of the healthful items.
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Considerations in Instituting Pricing Incentives to Promote More Healthful Snacking Involve parents in the process. Parents should be informed why prices for some items are increasing and why some are decreasing. Solicit their support in keeping their childrens snack money constant and not increasing the amount so the less healthful snacks are still affordable. Involve students in the process. The schools used surveys and taste-testing to allow students to have a say in what healthful snacks were sold. This increased their interest in the entire project. Students also learned what foods constituted a healthful snack . Collect data on what snacks are currently selling before you begin the process. A years data would be good, but even three months data would be helpful. If you are not currently keying your cash registers for individual snack purchases, but just keying in cash sales, consider establishing keys to track sales of individual items. This will allow you to know sales gures of specic snacks before you attempt to change students selections by altering price. Institute the pricing changes at the beginning of the school year so that students are not surprised by middle-of-the-year price changes. Increase prices of the snacks for which you want to discourage sales by 2 2 1/2 times the old selling price. For the healthful snacks, consider only covering your food costs or slightly less. Be sure and track your sales revenue so you know whether the formula for increased and reduced prices is working with your sales mix. Just make price changes initially so you will be able to see the effect of pricing alone. Do this for at least a month because sales may shift as students get used to the sticker shock. After this month, then begin to add promotions and incentives for purchasing healthful snacks at reduced price. This should give an added boost to the sales of these items.
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Challenging Students to Make the Healthy Choice!

Do your students respond to challenges and competitions? If so, you may be able to use that competitive nature to encourage them to make healthy food choices. Two models for competitions to encourage healthy food choices are described below. One is a competition developed through a collaboration between a Pennsylvania school foodservice director and a local produce supplier. The other is a challenge developed in Connecticut and featured in the USDA publication Fruits and Vegetables Galore. Produce Pentathlon This challenge/competition was developed through a collaboration between Carol Gilbert and Kegels Produce. At the time, Carol was the Child Nutrition Director for the Hempeld School District in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. This challenge, known as a Produce Pentathlon, involved a competition among all of the schools in the Hempeld School District. The objectives were to increase students consumption of fruits and vegetables and introduce new school lunch menu items. Five fruits and vegetables were chosen to be featured. Each month, for ve months, fruits or vegetables were featured in various forms on the school lunch menu, after the cafeteria staff had tested various recipes that included the featured fruit/vegetable. Classroom lessons, activity sheets, promotional signage, the school lunch menu, and school newsletters provided education and information about the featured fruit or vegetable, including nutritional and historical information. Cafeteria managers tracked selection of the featured fruit or vegetable each month. The school at which selection of the featured fruit or vegetable had increased the most was chosen as the winning school. Kegels Produce provided fruit smoothies for the students at the winning schools. In addition, Kegels provided training for the school foodservice staff, developed the school newsletter, sponsored student eld trips to their company, and assisted in organizing and inviting dignitaries to a kick-off event. For more information about the Produce Pentathlon, contact: Carol H. Gilbert, M. Ed., SFNS Carol Gilbert Consulting 628 Elm Street East Earl, PA 17519 Phone: (717) 669-2213 e-mail: carol@chgilbert.com Team Nutrition Vegetable and Fruit Challenge Elementary schools in Bloomeld, Connecticut implemented a 15-day vegetable and fruit challenge. Each classroom established a goal for the number of fruits and vegetables the class would taste at lunchtime (by multiplying the number of school days in the month, by the number of students in the class by 1.5 servings). After lunch each day, students recorded on a chart (provided in the Fruits and Vegetables Galore manual) the number of fruits and vegetables they tasted. A special tasting party or other small incentives were provided when the goal was met. Teachers, parents, and school foodservice staff reported that students consumed more fruits and vegetables during the challenge.
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This challenge was developed by Connecticut Team Nutrition. Directions for implementing the challenge can be found in USDAs Fruits and Vegetables Galore manual: <www.fns.usda.gov/ tn/Resources/fv_galore.html>. (pages 27 and 51 in the Meal Appeal section.) This manual also includes a variety of other ideas for promoting fruits and vegetables. In Pennsylvania, through a mini-grant program funded by the United States Department of Agricultures Team Nutrition program, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and administered through Project PA at Penn State University, three schools implemented fruit and vegetable challenges based on the models discussed above. These schools were Elkins Park School in the Cheltenham Township School District, Ford City High School in Armstrong School District, and Salisbury-Elk Lick Elementary School in Salisbury Elk-Lick School District. In addition, several other schools implemented smaller scale challenges or competitions within other environmental strategies. These projects are described below. The Produce Pentathlon at Elkins Park The team at Elkins Park school modied the Produce Pentathlon concept to introduce a competition at the individual level instead of a competition among schools. A kick-off Fabulous Fruits and Vegetables assembly was held early in the school year to provide education about fruits and vegetables, allow students to sample fruits and vegetables, and generate excitement for the upcoming competition. Students were surveyed to determine their current fruit and vegetable consumption, which fruits and vegetables they had never tried, and which ones they would be willing to try. This allowed the team to identify fruits and vegetables to feature during the ve months of the Produce Pentathlon. The featured fruits and vegetables for January through May, respectively, were zucchini, eggplant, mangoes, asparagus, and papaya. Each month a poster contest was held where students were asked to submit posters focusing on the featured fruit or vegetable. Posters were displayed in the lunch room. Students were asked to submit recipes from home featuring the fruit or vegetable of the month. Throughout the month, the fruit or vegetable of the month was featured on the school lunch menu in a variety of forms. Students became eligible to win prizes based on selection of the featured items. During the months of the Produce Pentathlon, fruit and vegetable sales as part of school meals were considerably higher than previous months, on average selling approximately 30% more fruits and vegetables during the Pentathlon months. Northwestern Lehighs Produce Pentathlon Northwestern Lehigh High School modied the original Produce Pentathlon concept to a project that involved promotion of featured items each month, culminating in an end-of-the-year challenge. The schools Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) chapter members became involved in many of the promotional activities. These students, along with broadcasting students, created short videos, advertisements, and public service announcements related to fruits and vegetables that were featured on the districts morning announcements. Each month, a selected fruit and vegetable was featured on the school lunch menu in a variety of forms. Accompanying promotional activities included taste-testing opportunities, a trivia contest related to bananas, a luau to promote pineapple, and a Chinese New Year celebration to promote snow peas. Each month, the foodservice director assessed the sale of the featured items to determine student acceptability and make decisions about new, healthy items to add to the menu. The most popular items that were added to the school lunch menu include peppers in a variety of forms, pineapple juice, and clementines. A culminating activity was titled Good Nutrition Makes You Smile. Samples of ten different products (asparagus, sugar peas, broccoli, peppers, grape tomatoes, strawberries, blueber-
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ries, mixed melons, orange wedges, and pineapple) were offered for sampling. A survey form was provided to each student. For each product a student sampled, he/she received a smile sticker on his/her survey sheet. Each student that reached the goal of ve smile stickers was entered into a grand prize drawing for a gift certicate for a local sporting goods store. Of the 157 students who returned survey forms, 69% indicated that they were eating some or much more fruits and vegetables than prior to the project activities and 85% indicated that they were some or much more aware of the benets of fresh fruits and vegetables. The FCCLA team developed a video and presentation based on their involvement in this project which they presented at their state conference. They were awarded a rst-place in the state. A Fruit and Vegetable Challenge at Salisbury-Elk Lick Elementary School Towards the end of each month, the foodservice director in Salisbury-Elk Lick School District visited each elementary classroom, delivering samples of featured fruits and vegetables for taste-testing. She also discussed the origins of the featured items, their nutritional quality, ways they can be eaten, and other interesting facts about the fruits and vegetables. The following month, the featured items were incorporated into the school lunch menu. Cafeteria aides tracked students selection of these items. At the end of each month, those students who had reached the pre-set goals for selection of these items were treated to a party. In general, sales of fruits and vegetables seemed to trend upward throughout the school year. In particular, during a month in which students selections of fruits and vegetables at lunch were charted in the classrooms, sales increased substantially over previous months. Adding Physical Activity to the Challenge at Ford City High School Armstrong School Districts Ford City High School implemented a Fruit and Vegetable Challenge that targeted students in 7th and 8th grade physical education (PE) classes. Classes competed against each other to win prizes, and winners were determined by their Challenge Point totals. Challenge Points were accumulated in three ways. 1. Eating your way to victory: Each class tracked its progress toward monthly, lunchtime fruit and vegetable consumption goals that were based on class size and the number of days in the month. 2. Smarts for success: Nutrition/health lessons were presented monthly to the students. These lessons were developed and taught by dietetic interns from a local university. The sessions included samples of Pennsylvania produce for students to taste. Students were then quizzed on the lesson content, and total class quiz scores were calculated. 3. Lets get physical: To encourage physical activity, the PE teacher assigned a score for each students participation (not ability) level in every class session, and total class scores were calculated monthly. Each month members of the class with the highest Challenge Point total received prizes. The class that received the most monthly prizes was awarded a special prize at the end of the project. Other Challenges/ Competitions Other schools implemented challenges and competitions as part of other environmental strategies. For example: McKeesport High School held a poster contest to promote their new milk vending machine. They also implemented a contest involving placement of stickers on selected milk containers in the vending machine. Students purchasing the marked bottles redeemed them for $25 toward the purchase of tickets to a school semi-formal dance.
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Southside Middle/High School held a Cook-Off contest featuring recipes using milk or milk products to promote their milk vending machine. Mt. Carmel Area Elementary School implemented a Fruit and Vegetable challenge similar to those described above to promote their School Market. Great Valley Middle School held trivia contests related to fruits and vegetables as part of their fruit and vegetable promotional activities. Honesdale High School held an Iron Chef competition. Teams of Family and Consumer Science students competed in a timed competition during which they were required to plan and prepare meals incorporating specic foods or ingredients. After the specied time had passed, the dishes were judged by a panel of community member experts with experience in the restaurant and hospitality industries. Port Allegany Elementary School implemented a Strong Body Competition for 4th grade students. Featured food items were assigned nutrition scores ranging from 115. In each of the classrooms, a life-sized Super Hero was drawn and displayed. Each part of the Super Heros body was assigned a value with the value of the entire body totaling 6000 points. When students made healthy choices during lunch they received points. These points were collectively and individually tallied in the classrooms. Students in the class with the most points were awarded prizes for the healthiest Super Hero. Advice About Challenges and Competitions The ultimate goal of a nutrition-related challenge or competition should be for students to meet a consumption goal or to replace less nutritious foods with more nutritious foods. The goal should not just be to increase consumption of a particular food or type of food. For example, a goal might be that students eat ve fruits and vegetables a day, not that students eat as many fruits and vegetables as they can. When deciding on rewards for contest winners, consider non-food rewards, and, in particular avoid using non-nutritious foods as rewards since they send students a conicting message. Consider gift certicates for athletic shoes, gift certicates that encourage physical activity (bowling, roller skating, etc.), extra recess time, or tickets to school dances as possible rewards. Cooking contests at the middle and high school level may be effective ways to allow students to put into practice the lessons they are learning about healthy nutrition. Be sure that the judges consider not only taste, but also safe food handling practices, food presentation, and nutritional quality of the food in determining the winners. When holding food consumption competitions, especially with younger children, be sensitive about asking students to report or compete based on foods consumed at home to avoid stigmatizing students, as there may be issues within families that do not always allow children to make healthy food decisions. Keep in mind that some students may not be competitive and therefore may not respond to challenges and competitions. A variety of strategies supporting the same healthy eating message as the challenge or competition may be necessary to reach these students . Communicate with your school foodservice department about nutrition-related competitions and challenges held during the school day. He/She may be able to play a role in supporting the competition, suggesting vendors, and providing advice that will assure that the competition supports and does not compete with the school meal programs. Increasing school meal participation and selection of healthy food items should be one of the objectives.
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Involving Students to Encourage Healthy Choices!

Offering children samples of foods, especially within school environments where they are surrounded by peers who are accepting the samples, can encourage them to try foods they have never tasted before. Students acceptance of these foods can lead to a change in eating habits and can provide suggestions for additional offerings for the school lunch program. In Pennsylvania, through a mini-grant program funded by the United States Department of Agricultures Team Nutrition program, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and administered through Project PA at Penn State University, six schools implemented strategies that involved providing fruit and vegetable taste-testing opportunities for students, teaching classroom lessons related to nutrition, holding fruit and vegetable promotional events, and incorporating featured fruits and vegetables into the school lunch programs. These projects are described below. Great Valley Middle School in Great Valley School District conducted fruit and vegetable promotional activities during ve months with each month featuring one fruit and one vegetable. Free samples of the monthly items were offered to the students in the cafeteria. (The project team noted that middle school students seemed more likely to try new foods if they were offered to them by high school students rather than parent volunteers.) Recipes for the sampled foods were distributed to students. Morning announcements provided nutrition facts. Trivia quizzes were held in the cafeteria on sampling days and small prizes were awarded for correct answers. Featured items were offered on the lunch line and sales of fruit were tracked for the entire school year. During the months in which fruit and vegetable promotional activities were held, an average of 30% more fruit was sold through the cafeteria than during the months in which there were no activities. In the Greater Johnstown School District middle school students became nutrition mentors for elementary students. The middle school students visited all elementary classrooms over the course of two days each month. The students brought with them fruit and vegetable samples for the younger students to taste-test. The older students also conducted lessons related to fruits and vegetables. The middle school students also starred in a play related to healthy eating which they performed for the younger students as well as for older adults at a senior citizens center. Through an exit survey conducted with elementary students at the end of the school year, 96% of elementary students reported that they enjoyed having the fruits and vegetables in the classroom, 89% indicated they would eat more fruits and vegetables during the summer, and 93% indicated they wanted the tastetesting to continue the following school year. At Port Allegany Elementary School, fruit and vegetable samples were offered to students in classrooms every other Tuesday. Students from the Vocational Technical school assisted with the distribution of the samples. Port Allegany was supported by their local Cooperative Extension ofce which provided fact sheets about each of the featured fruits and vegetables. These fact sheets were distributed to teachers who were asked to review the information with their students on the day of the fruit or vegetable sampling. Newsletters were regularly published and sent home to the students families. These newsletters promoted nutrition and tness.
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The project at Upper Moreland Township Elementary Center focused on increasing and measuring second grade students acceptance and consumption of fruits and vegetables. A kick-off assembly was held to introduce the project objectives. During this assembly, students learned the project pledge, to try new fruits and vegetables and have fun. The basic procedures of the project included a team member visiting each second-grade classroom once a month to present a mini-lesson introducing a new fruit or vegetable, providing an opportunity for students to taste it, and measuring students approval of the items. Later in the month that food was featured on the menu as a meal component, and the second-graders consumption of it was measured. Along with the monthly mini-lessons, teachers taught supplemental lessons. Lesson activities included keeping food logs and diaries, writing persuasive papers about benets of fruit as a snack, graphing favorite fruits and vegetables, singing songs and reciting poems about fruits and vegetables, listing fruits and alphabetizing them, and creating a cartoon about a favorite fruit. This team was able to point to some interesting and promising results related to exposing students to new fruits and vegetables, generating acceptance for the items, and encouraging their selection. For example, prior to the project 76 second graders indicated that they had tried kiwi. At a kiwi taste-testing event, 160 students sampled kiwi and 81% expressed approval. When kiwi was featured on the school lunch menu, 98 second graders consumed an entire serving. Based on results such as these, the school lunch menu was revised to include fresh fruits and vegetables daily. Wayne Highland School Districts project involved all six buildings in the school district and was implemented primarily through the Family and Consumer Science curriculum. The theme of this project Produce Express: Putting Honesdales Nutrition on Track was a reference to the communitys history with the rail industry. This theme was intended to inspire interest among the younger members of the target audience and also expressed a major objective of this project which was to provide a strong link with the community. Students throughout the district participated in a variety of grant activities including the following types of activities: Preparing and sampling various forms of fruit and vegetable products with accompanying educational activities. Discussing positive health effects of fruits and vegetables with a hospital dietitian who visited the classrooms. Serving as peer mentors for younger students involved in fruit and vegetable taste-testing activities. For example, middle school Family and Consumer Science students learned to prepare healthy snacks and to lead activities for younger students. The middle school students introduced the activities to the younger students and shared healthy snacks. Middle school students prepared a Produce Express, a train made from fruits and vegetables, which they shared with younger students to celebrate the communitys history with the rail industry. Learning about food preparation techniques from local chefs who visited the classrooms. One chef visited the middle school Family and Consumer Science class to help with the assembly of the Produce Express. Others visited the classroom to demonstrate how to make fresh fruit platters and healthy chili, as well as teach cutting techniques and safe food handling procedures. Reaching out to older members of the community through Generations Celebrations. Older members of the community were invited to the Family and Consumer Science classes to discuss lifestyle changes since they were young and to share a healthy snack. Creation of public service announcements about fruits and vegetables
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Taping of a segment about the importance of fruits and vegetables which aired on a morning news program covering Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania Preparation and recording of a segment for a weekly radio show, Heres To Your Health which aired on a local radio station. Tips on Conducting Taste-Testing Activities Be sure to practice safe food handling practices. Involve students in preparing the foods for taste-testing, if appropriate. Use the opportunity to learn about student preferences and try to incorporate these items in the school meals programs, if possible. Be aware of student allergies prior to offering food samples. Be sure to offer nutritious foods for sampling. Do not assume that students will not nd foods acceptable unless fat or sugar is added. If possible, involve peer mentors in providing food samples and leading educational activities. Connect with local farmers to give students the opportunity to enjoy locally grown produce. Involve the students in growing fruits or vegetables if possible. For information on a resource for self-sustaining student-driven gardens check out Earthbox Containers at www.earthbox.com. Use the taste testing opportunities to introduce students to fruits and vegetables that may have never tried before. Consider using older students to offer samples to younger students as opposed to adults. Be sure that fruits and vegetables that are offered are ripe and at their peak of avor. Offer students repeated exposure to fruits and vegetables through taste-testing opportunities, competitions or challenges, and on the school lunch menu. Often multiple opportunities to try fruits and vegetables are needed in order to encourage students to try new items.
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Evaluating Your Environmental Nutrition Strategy

In these days of limited budgets and tightening of resources, evaluation of your environmental strategy can be your key to a successful project and to document success to ensure support for your strategy and improve sustainability. Evaluations can be conducted at different stages in implementing your environmental strategy for various purposes. Evaluations conducted prior to implementing your strategy can help to structure your strategy and provide data that could be used in requests for funding. For example, a survey showing that students are not consuming recommended servings of milk products could be used to justify the introduction of a milk vending machine to a potential funding agent. Evaluations conducted during implementation of a strategy can help to make necessary adjustments to a strategy. For example, a focus group conducted with students to determine why they are not purchasing items from a school market can help you make adjustments to increase sales. A post-project evaluation can document success to assure project sustainability or provide information about changes that may need to be made to improve the strategy. Before conducting an evaluation in your school(s), check on your school districts policies and procedures for conducting research. You may be required to obtain parental consent if you are involving students in your evaluation procedures. There may be issues of condentiality to consider. Think about partnering with a local university to assist with and offer advice about the evaluation. While surveys and focus groups are among the most common evaluation tools, collection of sales data and measurement of project results against established criteria can also be useful in evaluating environmental strategies. Focus Groups Focus groups are carefully planned discussions structured to identify perceptions on a distinct area of interest in a non-threatening environment. Focus groups typically involve six to ten individuals. Focus groups with students or another appropriate audience conducted prior to and during implementation of an environmental strategy can help to rene your strategy and improve chances for success. Tips for conducting successful focus groups include the following: Involve a homogenous audience. Focus groups should involve distinct audiences. For example, it would not be appropriate to involve teachers and students in the same focus group since each group may not feel free to share their true opinions in the presence of individuals representing the other groups. Similarly, it may not be appropriate to conduct mixed-gender focus groups if you think one groups opinions may be stied because of the presence of the other group. Determine objectives of the focus group. Your objectives will help determine who should be recruited for the focus group. For example, if your objective is to implement a Breakfast in the Classroom program, you might conduct a focus group with teachers to determine their concerns about implementing this type of program. You might also involve students in a separate focus group to determine motivating factors for participating in a Breakfast in the Classroom program. Carefully select your target audience. It may be necessary to conduct more than one focus group to get truly representative opinions. If
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assessing students opinions, be sure to not limit recruitment to only the most popular students or those who have shown an interest in nutrition. Doing so may prevent you from assessing the opinions of a large percentage of your target audience. Use open-ended questions. Close ended questions lead to short responses. Focus groups should be designed as discussions, not as interviews. Participants should feed off of one anothers responses. A successful focus group often feels like a group of individuals with a common interest or common characteristic gathered around a table chatting. Be non-judgmental. Create a non-threatening, non-judgmental environment. Be sure to not allow your own opinions into the discussion or to make participants feel that they are expected to respond in a certain way. If your position is such that you do not feel that your participants will respond openly, consider recruiting someone else to conduct the focus group. Keep the focus group focused. Sometimes focus groups can evolve into discussions about topics of interest to the participants rather than meeting your objectives. In this case, acknowledge the importance of the issues raised, but diplomatically steer the discussion back to the intended purpose. Offer an incentive. An incentive can help in recruiting participants as well as make the participants feel that their input is valued. Incentives might include a snack, a small monetary incentive, or a gift certicate. Record your results. It may be difcult to act as a focus group moderator as well as take notes on participants responses. It may be useful to recruit an assistant and /or record the focus group for later review. Surveys Surveys can take a variety of forms. They can be conducted prior to initiation of an environmental strategy to provide information that can be useful in developing the strategy, pre/post surveys to assess changes in knowledge, attitudes, or behavior as a result of your environmental strategy, or exit surveys asking a target audience to reect on the strategy and provide feedback. Student surveys can be conducted in classrooms, during homeroom or another period, put on cafeteria trays for completion during lunch, or sent home for completion and return. Teacher surveys can be placed in mail boxes or distributed during faculty meetings. Parent surveys can be sent home with other materials or distributed at Back to School nights or parent/teacher association meetings. The National Food Service Management Institute (NFSMI) has a variety of survey forms available for use with audiences such as students, educators, and parents, as well as reports based on administration of these surveys. Check the Resource Guide on the NFSMI Web site <www.nfsmi.org>. Some tips for writing survey questions include the following: Avoid open-ended questions. Responses to open-ended questions are often difcult to analyze, especially if you have a large number of respondents. If you feel open-ended questions are necessary, you might want to consider whether focus groups might be a better evaluation strategy.
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Keep the survey to a reasonable length. Surveys that are too long discourage completion. Keep the survey to a length that will not be considered too burdensome. Make sure to include all possible response categories. Response categories should allow every respondent to respond to every question. For example, if you ask students, How many fruits and vegetables are you eating now as compared to last year, prior to the introduction of the school market? and your response categories are less than last year, slightly more than last year, and signicantly more than last year, you have not allowed a response category for those students whose consumption has not changed. Make sure each question asks a distinct question. Questions that address more than one topic do not allow you to form conclusions about responses. For example, if you ask the question, How satised are you with the price and quality of the products in the milk vending machine? and your response categories are not satised somewhat satised and very satised, you can not identify distinctions between the respondents rating of the price versus the quality of the items. These should be asked as separate questions. Avoid leading questions. Avoid questions that lead respondents to respond in the way you would like them to respond. For example, if assessing teachers impressions of a peer-mentoring program, the following question (an extreme example) would be considered leading: How impressed were you with the middle school peer mentors who volunteered their time and gave up a study period to come to your classroom to teach a nutrition lesson? Survey Examples from the Team Nutrition Schools Several of the schools involved in the Team Nutrition project developed or modied existing surveys to meet their evaluation needs. Below are excerpts from two of these surveys. Example #1: Taste Testing Food Rating Sheet This is a form used by the team in Lehman Intermediate School in East Stroudsburg Area School District. This form was distributed to students and they were asked to complete it to rate various food samples. Directions: At each food station, rate the healthful snacks by circling a number on the rating scale below: Rating Scale: 1 = Dislike, 2 = Okay, 3 = Good, 4 = Very Good, 5 = Simply Delicious Station # 1 Food Name 1 = Dislike, 2 = Okay, 3 = Good, 4 = Very Good, 5 = Simply Delicious Station # 2 Food Name 1 = Dislike, 2 = Okay, 3 = Good, 4 = Very Good, 5 = Simply Delicious
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Example #2: Parent Pre/Post Test The team at Port Allegany Elementary school conducted pre and post surveys with teachers, students, and parents. Below are excerpts from the parent survey. 1. Which of the following do you check on food nutrition labels? __ Carbohydrate __ Cholesterol __ Fat __ Fibre __ Protein __ Sodium __ Sugars __ Trans fat __ Dont read labels
Would you like to learn more about the nutritional values of foods? YES or NO How many fruits and vegetables should you eat per day to be healthy? __ 1 to 2 servings per day __ 3 to 4 servings per day __ 5 or more servings per day __ None How many dairy products should you eat per day to be healthy? __ 1 to 2 servings per day __ 3 or more servings per day __ None Would you like to obtain more information about nutrition? YES or NO Would you like to try healthy new recipes? YES or NO COMMENTS: Example #3: Student Post-test The team at Ford City High School in Armstrong School District conducted a post-test with students. Below are the ve questions that were included on the test. 1. Are you eating more fruits and vegetables since you were in PE class? a) no more b) some more c) a lot more 2. Have you tried new or different fruits and vegetables since you participated in the Fruit and Vegetable challenge in PE class? a) none b) some c) many 3. How much more have you tried to exercise since you have had your PE classes? a) no more b) some more c) a lot more 4. How much has your overall activity level in PE class improved since you were involved in this years PE class and the Fruit and Vegetable challenge? a) no improvement b) some improvement c) a lot of improvement 5. How much has your participation in the Fruit and Vegetable challenge improved your overall eating habits at lunch? a) no improvement b) some improvement c) a lot of improvement
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Collection of sales data Documenting nancial success can be a powerful tool in gaining support for a project. Depending on your strategy, different types of sales data could be collected. Revenue and prot data can be collected and documented for school markets and milk vending machines. If you are able to track this data and link it with activities conducted to promote the school market or vending machine, you may be able to determine if these activities affected sales. For any environmental strategy, you can assess effects on the school meals programs by tracking participation in school meals or sales of a specic food item or items through the school meals programs. You can also track total sales or sales of specic food items through competitive food venues such as vending machines. When tracking any type of sales or school meals participation data, be sure that you have a frame of reference that will allow you to show change. For example, if you want to determine if your Produce Pentathlon resulted in increased sales of fruits and vegetables through the school meals programs, track these sales both during the Produce Pentathlon months and during the months when no promotions are occurring to be able to show changes or differences. Measurement of Project Results against Established Criteria You may consider assessing how your project helped your school make progress toward meeting a goal by measuring the results using established criteria. For example, USDAs School Improvement Checklist from the Changing the Scene kit <teamnutrition.usda.gov/Resources/changing.html> is an evaluation of a schools nutrition environment. Completing this checklist prior to implementation of an environmental strategy and following implementation of a strategy can provide documentation of how your strategy helped to improve your schools nutrition environment. Other forms of established criteria include the CDCs School Health Index <apps.nccd.cdc.gov/shi/default.aspx>, the criteria established for the HealthierUS School Challenge <teamnutrition.usda.gov/HealthierUS/ index.html>, as well as criteria that may have been established in your schools local wellness policy. General Tips for Evaluations 1. Always begin by clearly dening your project objectives. This will help in developing questions, choosing your evaluation strategy, and identifying your target audience. 2. Be sure your project objectives are not too far-reaching and are measurable. Although reducing rates of childhood obesity is an admirable goal, the causes are so multi-faceted that one program alone is not likely to show an immediate effect on childhood obesity. Also, this outcome would be difcult to measure. 3. Dene your evaluation objectives. This will also help you develop questions and identify your target audience. For example, is your evaluation objective to win support for your environmental strategy from school administrators? Consider what factors or outcomes would motivate school administrators to support the strategy. Is the motivating factor improvement in academic achievement, healthier students, less plate waste in the cafeteria, nancial success, or some other factor? When you have answered that question, you can structure your questions and evaluation strategy to meet your evaluation objectives. 4. Be careful in interpreting results. You may not be able to claim a cause and effect relationship in all cases, but you may be able to say that your environmental strategy was associated with some desired effect. Also, consider extenuating factors in interpreting the results. For example, when tracking sales of specic items through school meals programs or other venues, if you detect a decrease in sales consider possible causes not related to your environmental strategy. Perhaps school was not
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in session for some period of time during your measurement period, students had limited access to the items you are measuring, or sales of another item(s) increased to offset the decrease in sales of the targeted item. 5. Be sensitive to issues of condentiality and avoid stigmatizing subjects that participate in your evaluation. When conducting surveys and focus groups, share your results on a group level rather than reporting individual responses. Be particularly sensitive to issues of condentiality when asking students, especially younger students, to report on foods consumed at home. There may be issues within families that do not always allow children to make healthy food decisions and you do not want to cause embarrassment or stigmatization by sharing these responses. 6. Share your results. Communicate about your evaluation results to gain support for your environmental strategy. Communication strategies might include articles in the school newspaper, notes on the school lunch menu, reports during morning announcements, and presentations at parent/ teacher, faculty, or school board meetings. Sources: Krueger, R. A., & Casey, M. A. (2000). Focus groups: A practical guide for applied research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Salant, P ., & Dillman D.A.(1994) How to Conduct Your Own Survey. New York City, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc
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Tips for Success in Implementing an Environmental Nutrition Strategy

Use peer mentors Using peer mentors is a win-win situation. Young children seem to respond well to lessons taught by peers and older students learn the material because they have to teach it. Peer mentoring strategies were used throughout the Environmental Nutrition Strategies project and included involvement of Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America chapter members (Northwestern Lehigh High School), use of a class of gifted students to teach nutrition concepts to younger students (East Side and West Side Elementary schools in the Greater Johnstown School District), recruitment of students athletes as role models for healthy eating (McKeesport High School), use of high school students to offer food samples to younger students (Great Valley Middle School), and use of middle school students to lead younger students in nutrition activities (Wayne Highlands School District). Use community resources to lessen the workload and promote project sustainability. Some of the teams drew upon community resources to enhance their projects and decrease the workload for the school teams. Ford City High School used Dietetic interns from a local university to develop and present nutrition lessons. Port Allegany Elementary school used fact sheets about fruits and vegetables developed at a local Cooperative Extension ofce. Great Valley Middle school invited local farmers to do displays and demonstrations. Honesdale High School invited local representatives from hospitality and foodservice businesses to serve as judges for an Iron Chef competition providing feedback to the students about food quality and presentation. Involve students to increase satisfaction. The school team leaders noted that, in general, students seemed to like to be involved in food preparation, and they liked nger foods and the more unusual or exotic items. Team leaders were surprised about the fruits and vegetables that students seemed to enjoy such as peppers, eggplant, and mangoes. In addition to introducing new food choices to the students, these projects helped the school foodservice directors identify new, healthy items that are acceptable to the students and will become regular items on the school lunch menu. Be sure that foods offered to students are high quality. Use safe food handling practices and teach students to do the same. Be sure that foods offered to students are high in quality. If you are promoting healthy food products to students and the quality of those items is not adequate, you may not get a second chance to encourage students to try them. Fruits and vegetables that are offered to students should be ripe and at their peak of freshness. Prepare for success. The success level of the school markets and vending machines surpassed the teams expectations. The school markets regularly sold out of all items, so having an adequate supply of items is important. Students came to expect school markets on certain days of the week or month. If the market was not available, students were disappointed. The success of the milk vending machines caused some trafc ow problems and resulted in some students being tardy for class or asking to leave class to purchase milk. The teams had to adjust the hours of operation and carefully consider the location of the milk vending machine to address these issues.
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Be sure that your project results in environmental change. Stand-alone activities may result in some temporary positive change, but planning is needed to insure that the project results in positive, sustainable, environmental change. For example, use what you have learned in assessing students food preferences to make changes in the foods offered to students in school meals and/or through other venues. Choose your rewards carefully. Some schools have found that students respond well to incentives and rewards. Choose these rewards and incentives carefully, making sure you are sending the right messages. Use of food as a reward is discouraged as it sends the wrong message about the purpose of food. Consider rewards that promote physical activity, such as tickets to school dances, gift certicates for athletic shoes, gift certicates for use at a local bowling alley, pedometers, water bottles, or frisbees. Evaluate your environmental strategy. Document the success of your strategy and share these results to gain support and ensure sustainability.
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Environmental Nutrition Strategies Schools

Thanks to the Environmental Nutrition Strategies Schools for participating in this project, submitting reports, collecting and reporting data, and working with us to document their strategies, successes, and lessons learned. The school districts that participated in this project as well as the schools that were the primary implementation sites are listed below.
District
School(s)
Armstrong .................................. Ford City High School Boyertown Area .......................... Washington Elementary School Cheltenham Township ................ Elkins Park (Middle) School East Stroudsburg Area ............... Lehman Intermediate (Middle) School Great Valley ................................ Great Valley Middle School Greater Johnstown ..................... East Side Elementary School and West Side Elementary School McKeesport Area ........................ McKeesport Area High School Mount Carmel Area ..................... Mount Carmel Area Elementary School Northwestern Lehigh ................... Northwestern Lehigh High School Pittsburgh Public Schools ........... Colfax Spanish Academy Port Allegany .............................. Port Alleghany Elementary School Salisbury-Elk Lick ....................... Salisbury-Elk Lick Elementary School South Side Area ......................... South Side Area Middle/High School Upper Moreland Township .......... Upper Moreland Township Elementary Center Primary School Wayne Highlands ........................ All six schools in the district
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This project has been funded by Pennsylvania Department of Education, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and federal funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The contents of this publication do not necessarily reect the view or policies of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. To le a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Ofce of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 or (202) 720-6382 (TTY). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. The Pennsylvania Department of Education does not discriminate in its educational programs, activities or employment practices based on race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability, age, religion, ancestry, union membership, or any other legally protected category. This policy is in accordance with state law, including the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, and with federal law, including Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. If you have any questions about this publication, or for additional copies, contact the Division of Food and Nutrition, 333 Market Street, 4th Floor, Harrisburg PA 17126-0333; Telephone: 1-800331-0129, ext. 94364; FAX: 717-783-6566, or Text Telephone TTY: 717-783-8445. Any complaint of harassment or discrimination pertaining to education should be directed to the Equal Employment Opportunity Manager, Department of Education, 333 Market Street, 11th Floor, Harrisburg, PA 17126-0333, Voice Telephone: 717-787-4417, FAX: 717-783-9348, or Text Telephone TTY: 717-783-8445, FAX: 717-783-9348. For information on accommodations for persons with disabilities, contact the ADA Coordinator, Department of Education at the same address, Voice Telephone: 717-783-9791, FAX: 717-772-2317, or Text Telephone TTY: 717-783-8445.
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