The Department of Health and Human Services is the Grants.gov program’s managing partner, and allows access to the 26 federal grant-making agencies available through this convenient E-Government initiative. Below are the links to those agency websites.

The Colorado Health Foundation supports grants that lead to lasting improvement in the health of Coloradans. Proposals that focus on long-term improvement through multiyear funding are part of our mission. Research projects, health policy agendas, and educational programs are among the initiatives we support. We partner with nonprofits, businesses, government agencies, and other foundations to find solutions to critical health issues. We believe that collaboration is the best medicine for the health care challenges we face. Below is a short description of several of our initiatives, along with links to Web sites and full reports for more detail.

The National School Board Association website has a section on School Health Programs. This link has information and resources to help policymakers and educators make informed decisions about health issues affecting the academic achievement and healthy development of students and the effective operation of schools.

Developed by the South Dakota Department of Education, Minds in Motion is a set of activities that integrates physical activity into math, science, reading and social studies. Activities are included for both elementary and middle school.

Sponsored by the Colorado Department of Education, this site provides information about funded CSH districts, upcoming trainings and resources.

CDC's Healthy Youth website has a section devoted to coordinated school health, health topics, evaluation, the new Physical Education Curriculum Analysis Tool (PECAT) and funding resources.

The Action for Healthy Kids website has information to address the epidemic of overweight, undernourished and sedentary youth by focusing on changes at school.

From the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a state-by-state comparison of each state's policy on foods sold out of vending machines, school stores, a la carte, and other foods sold outside of school meals.

The Knowledge Path: Physical Activity is an electronic guide to recent, high-quality resources that analyze data, describe public health campaigns and other health-promotion programs, and report on research aimed at identifying promising strategies for improving physical activity levels within families, schools, and communities. Produced by the Maternal and Child Health Library at Georgetown University, the knowledge path also provides resources that describe the consequences of sedentary behavior. The knowledge path is intended for use by health professionals, policymakers, educators, coaches, and families who are interested in obtaining timely information on this topic.

This presentation, by James F. Bogden of the National Association of State Boards of Education, provides an overview of strategies for working with the education system to facilitate better school nutrition.

This PDF document, which can be downloaded from the website of the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) Center for Health Promotion, provides a summary of the intended audience, goal(s), accomplishments, and contact information for a number of evidence-based programs.

This back-to-school effort to promote nutrition, physical activity, and learning includes a database of changes schools can make to improve nutrition and physical activity. Topics in the "Resources to Improve Schools" database include advertising, after school programs, a la carte foods, assessment tools, childhood obesity, family outreach, nutrition education, physical activity, physical education, school meal programs, and staff wellness.

The new Healthy Lifestyle web page provides parents and other caregivers with tools for healthy living, including tasty, low cost menus and recipes that meet the new food guidelines. The web page has a handy Calorie Burner Chart, the MyPyramid Tracker, and the ESPH Tracking Card.

The Eat Smart. Play Hard.TM kids' web page provides kids with interactive learning and skill-building experiences in a virtual community setting. The web page encourages and motivates kids to make better lifestyle choices using songs, experiments, activity sheets, comics, clipart, worksheets, games, posters, e-cards, recipes, and other materials that help to form and reinforce healthy behaviors

From the USDA, this document is intended to be a primary source of dietary health information for policymakers, nutrition educators, and health providers.

The Physical Education Curriculum Analysis Tool (PECAT) will help school districts conduct a clear, complete, and consistent analysis of written physical education curricula, based upon national physical education standards. The PECAT is customizable to include local standards. The results from the analysis can help school districts enhance existing curricula, develop their own curricula, or select a published curriculum, for the delivery of quality physical education in schools.

This study, prompted by concern over the rate of obesity among school-age children, was designed to obtain current national information on availability of foods and opportunities for physical activity in public elementary schools. The report includes findings on the types of food sold at one or more locations in schools and in their cafeterias or lunchrooms; the types of food sold at vending machines and school stores or snack bars, and times when foods were available at those locations; food service operations and contracts with companies to sell foods at schools; scheduled recess, including the days per week, times per day, and minutes per day of recess; scheduled physical education, including the days per week, class length, and average minutes per week of physical education; activities to encourage physical activity among elementary students; and the physical assessment of students.

Promising Practices Network (PPN) on Children, Families and Communities, is a unique partnership that is dedicated to providing quality, accessible, evidence-based information about what works to improve the lives of children, families, and communities. Operated by RAND, the site provides impartial, results-oriented research information that filters the evaluation literature and finds programs whose effectiveness has been soundly demonstrated. PPN was recently named one of the 18 most innovative government activities in the United States as part of the Innovations in American Government Awards.

A 2007 Survey Of External Support For K-12 School Districts by DeHavilland Associates offers insights into how community/school partnerships are structured and what types of relationships schools and districts have established.

From the Center for Research Strategies, this fact sheet summarizes the available evidence linking coordinated school health programs and academic achievement/outcomes.

Research shows that the most effective vehicle for interacting with the local community on school health issues is through a School Health Council (SHC) . This guide from the American Cancer Society (ACS), presents an overview of SHCs, and how local ACS offices can influence their function.

Action for Healthy Kids has released a new field report with proven strategies for gaining attention and support from school leaders for important school wellness initiatives.

From the National School Boards Association, this newsletter is intended for school boards that wish to be proactive about school heatlh.

Created by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a joint initiative of the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation, this easy online tool helps schools take steps to create a healthier environment for students and staff.

From Harvard University, this article describes the results of a qualitative research study examining school staff and community members’ experiences working with the School Health Index, a self-assessment and planning tool that addresses nutrition and physical activity.

An illustrated look at the components of Coordinated School Health

From Colorado Connections for Healthy Schools, this PowerPoint presentation presents an overview of CSH programs and their benefits.

Colorado is emerging as a leader in implementing coordinated school health (CSH) programs. Across the state, there are over 100 school-level coordinated health teams, representing 21 school districts. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides funding for some of these teams through the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) infrastructure grant, and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), Steps to a Healthier Colorado. Other teams receive funding through LiveWell, a partnership between The Colorado Health Foundation, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, and Kaiser Permanente.

The Rocky Mountain Center for Health Promotion and Education (RMC) is a private, nonprofit corporation located at the base of Colorado's Rocky Mountains. Since 1974, RMC has disseminated comprehensive school health education programs and provided in-service training to educators, parents, and others committed to improving health.

"Health Elevations reports on the major health issues in Colorado. Each issue features a series of stories about individuals and organizations that are making Coloradans healthier. “What’s Working” highlights both the successes and the lessons learned from the work of our non-profit partners. In addition, we include interviews with national and local experts on major health issues impacting Colorado."

"Four- to twelve-days of wilderness adventure, with a group of other girls and two very cool women staff. It’s kind of like a camp, but better."

Urban Roots is a youth development program that uses sustainable agriculture as means to effect lasting change for youth participants, and to nourish East Austin residents who currently have limited access to healthy foods. Young people cultivate a local, diversified organic farm, selling a portion of their harvest in the Austin area and donating a portion to local hunger relief programs. Through this process young people can connect to the land and learn the benefits of growing, eating, selling and donating organic food, as well as leadership, entrepreneurial and life skills, and the importance of giving back to their community.

Links

The School Nutrition Association is a national, nonprofit professional organization representing more than 55,000 members who provide high-quality, low-cost meals to students across the country...

Local chef for French high school, shops locally and cooks from scratch for a reasonable price.

"Some nutritionists are opting for organic dishes and generally healthier meals — and students are finding that they like them..." Examples from several Colorado school districts

Together, we’ll tackle outdated district spending policies, commodity-based food service organizations, political platforms with no mention of school food or child health — and ultimately the USDA — to ensure that kids everywhere have wholesome, nutritiou

Colorado funds five school districts through the Colorado Connections for Healthy Schools Initiative to pilot the coordinated school health model and create systems change to promote healthy schools over the next three years. The intent of the pilot prog

Shows organizational structure of the Office

The committee's charge is to examine the structure, operation, and possible outcomes of comprehensive school health programs and to consider their status and potential for wider implementation....

Through the efforts of the Office of Healthy Schools, the Mississippi Department of Education offers a system of coordinated school health services to 152 school districts to assist them in developing organizations that make the connection between good st

Engages diverse organizations, leaders and volunteers in actions that foster sound nutrition and good physical activity in children, youth and schools...

...Our goal is to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic by 2015 by improving access to affordable, healthy foods and increasing opportunities for physical activity in schools and communities across the nation...

This report from the General Accounting Office reviews how school lunches nationwide are meeting nutrition standards and how schools are encouraging healthy eating as well as what barriers selected schools faced in accomplishing this and what innovative s

"The DNPAO State-based Physical Activity Program Directory site provides information about physical activity programs involving state departments of health..."

Policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics (2003)

"This statement proposes strategies for early identification of excessive weight gain by using body mass index, for dietary and physical activity interventions during health supervision encounters, and for advocacy and research..."

"These workshops are designed to help those who work in and with schools improve school health policies, programs, and curricula..."

Lots of articles on health and nutrition for children from the CDC.

"Welcome to the Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity Legislative Database! Search for state-level bills related to nutrition and physical activity topics..."

This database collects, tracks, and summarizes state legislation that either seeks to increase access to healthy food or opportunities for physical activity in one's daily routine.

...includes policies & practices that have been shown to contribute to healthy behaviors among students and adults. The criteria have been through a scientific review process led by experts at the American Heart Association & the Healthy Schools Program..

A Closer Look at the Eight Components of Comprehensive School Health Education (from the Colorado Department of Education)

2006 Annual Meeting presentations from the session Sugar Suspension: The Healthy New Direction of Snacking at School - National Conference of State Legislatures.