School Wellness
Healthy schools build healthy communities. We collaborate with national and state agencies, local organizations, and schools to enhance the policies, systems, and environments that shape students' lifelong habits. Our experience spans wellness policies, meal environments, school gardens, and more. Explore our work below.
OUR WORK
Comprehensive School Physical Activity Programs (CSPAP)
CSPAP can spark lifelong habits by weaving movement into the school day. For over a decade, we've partnered with Arizona SNAP-Ed to evaluate CSPAP efforts — assessing student knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors alongside school-level policies, systems, and environments related to physical activity (PA). These insights have helped guide schools toward more active, engaged learners.
Results:
- FY20 Youth PA Outcomes, p32-38
- Youth PA Outcomes (2019)
- FY19 Youth PA Outcomes, p30-34
- FY18 Youth PA Outcomes, p31-34
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Meal Environments
In school lunchrooms, small changes in service and design can inspire students to make healthier choices. For over six years, we've partnered with Arizona SNAP-Ed and underserved schools to assess and improve meal environments using the Smarter Lunchrooms Movement (SLM). Today, we share an updated, Arizona-specific SLM Scorecard — co-developed with the SLM creator and freely available to all schools.
Results:
- FY25 SLM Score Changes, p30
- FY24 SLM Score Changes, p33-36
- FY22 SLM Score Changes, p30-34
- FY20 SLM Scores by Groups, p31-32
- FY19 SLM Feasibility Report
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School Gardens
Gardens can be green spaces, ecosystems, living classrooms, and school community hubs. For over a decade, we've evaluated and supported Arizona school gardens. Today, we offer Developing Integrated Gardens (DIG) in Schools — a free, publicly available program with a four-step cycle of change to help schools measure their garden program integration and build on what's working.
Results:
- FY25 DIG in Schools Findings, p30
- FY25 Rural Garden Outcomes, p34-35
- FY24 DIG in Schools Pilot Brief
- FY23 Participatory Approach to Developing DIG in Schools Report
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Understanding COVID Responses
When COVID-19 disrupted schooling in 2020, Arizona districts and the programs supporting them faced unprecedented uncertainty. Drawing on complex adaptive systems (CAS) theory, we studied how Local Education Agencies (LEAs) developed reopening plans and how SNAP-Ed adapted to meet emerging community needs. This work offers insight into how school systems navigate complex — and often dynamic — public health challenges.
Results:
- SNAP-Ed Agility & Adaptability (2024)
- CAS, SNAP-Ed, & COVID Speed Talk (2021)
- FY20 Meeting District Need, p39-40
- Reopening Plans: Findings (2021)
- Reopening Plans: Early Results (2020)
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Wellness Policies
Strong wellness policies set the foundation for healthier schools. For 10+ years, we've worked with state agencies and over 100 Arizona districts and charter schools to review, revise, and implement their Local Wellness Policies (LWPs) using established tools like the WellSAT and the National Healthy Schools Award Checklist (NHSAC). Together, these efforts turn policy into meaningful commitments to student health.
Results:
- FY25 WellSAT Outcomes, p29
- FY22 WellSAT Outcomes, p27-30
- Systems Approach to LWP Improvements (2020)
- Case Study: New Model for Assessing LWPs (2019)
- FY17 NHSAC & WellSAT Findings, p79-110
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Wellness Committees
Wellness committees bring school communities together — including staff, families, students, and community partners — to champion school health. For over a decade, we've used mixed methods to evaluate and strengthen Arizona's District Wellness Committees and School Health Advisory Councils (SHACs). Today, this work helps schools build the networks they need to foster wellness initiatives.
Results: