Adding Tobacco to School Wellness Policies

Audience:

Tobacco program managers, health educators and other stakeholders interested in the creation of a statewide surveillance system on school-based tobacco interventions, and utilizing data collected to expand comprehensive tobacco-free school grounds policies and quality school-based tobacco interventions.

Key Points:

Kansas found a unique opportunity to create a surveillance system to monitor comprehensive tobacco-free school grounds policies and school-based tobacco interventions by connecting to the Kansas State Department of Education’s (KSDE) Model Wellness Policy System. Kansas Model Wellness Policies were created to address nutrition, nutrition education and physical activity in response to the national Child Nutrition Reauthorization. With the onset of Child Nutrition Reauthorization of 2010, states have been asked to revise their current model wellness policies to make them more healthful. This revision process sets the stage for consideration of tobacco specific guidelines.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) and KSDE staff conducted a literature review on evidenced-based youth tobacco interventions and updated draft tobacco guidelines.  An advisory committee was established to provide feedback and recommendations on the draft policies.

Educational Experience:

Participants will learn the process the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE),  KSDE staff, and partners completed in the creation of tobacco-specific model wellness policies for replication in their states.

Benefits:

Poster presentation attendees will learn to incorporate tobacco components into current physical activity and nutrition policies as well as successful collaboration strategies to create a practical evidenced-based framework for tobacco interventions through a unified state vision.