The Alliance for a Healthier Generation

As part of our School Wellness Program, Hall County partnered with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation which is an organization whose mission is to reduce the nationwide prevalence of childhood obesity by 2015 and to empower kids nationwide to make healthy lifestyle choices.

The Alliance works to positively affect the places that can make a difference in a child’s health: homes, schools, doctor’s offices, and communities.

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program provides a framework of criteria focused on improving the health of students and decreasing the prevalence of childhood obesity by coordinating efforts among parents, school staff, and students. The program targets various health related policies and procedures in schools, such as employee and student wellness, physical and health education, and of course school nutrition.

The program also has three tiers: bronze, silver, and gold. As schools progress toward “Gold Status” they adopt increasingly stringent health policies that build upon the previous tiers.

The following are some of the criteria that must be met at each level:

Bronze– Half of all grains at breakfast and lunch must be whole grains, a different fruit is served every day for lunch, offer at least 5 different, non-fried fruits or vegetables every day at lunch.

In order to reach the Bronze level only 10 exempt fundraising days (where food and drinks are sold that do not meet the Smart Snacks Guidelines) are allowed by the Alliance for A Healthier Generation.

Silver– Conduct annual taste tests with students. All salad dressings must contain less than 80 calories per serving, and servings must be portion controlled. Offer non-fried fish at least once each week. Schools offer no dessert, or only Alliance approved desserts.

Gold– ALL grains offered at lunch and breakfast are whole grains. Absolutely no fried products are offered for school meals. Starchy vegetables (corn, potatoes, and green peas) are limited to one cup per week. Schools offer at least one low-fat entrée daily(less than 12g total fat, and 4.5g saturated fat). Schools only offer lean protein products (less than 10g total fat and 4.5g saturated fat).

For more information about the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, visit their website at: https://www.healthiergeneration.org/

Riverbend will once again participate in this program. Riverbend received the Bronze National Recognition Award in 2012 and 2014 for its efforts to make Riverbend a healthier school. We will be working toward improving the health of our students as well as our staff members. Look for updates and activities throughout the year.