Healthy Schools Campaign

Running Clubs Recruit for Wellness

by Allie Krass, Charity Athletics Manager

A recent article in Crain’s Chicago Business highlights the role that running clubs play in shaping the corporate culture and employee satisfaction at organizations around Chicago, from hospitals to financial institutions.

At HSC, we love to hear about efforts to instill a “culture of wellness” in the workplace, much as we work to make schools healthy workplaces for the millions of adults who spend their days there.

Our Charity Athletics Team offers the chance for running clubs to make races more meaningful by supporting HSC’s work to create healthy school environments. Right now, we are recruiting runners and running clubs to join our teams in the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in Oct. 2008 and the ING New York City Marathon in Nov. 2008.

Individual runners or groups of runners may join HSC’s team. Corporations may sponsor their employees’ participation, match their gifts, or sign on as an official corporate sponsor, with all the accompanying benefits.

As the weather gets warmer and runners begin to prepare for these Fall races, a few are taking the opportunity to share their passion with co-workers who may never have defined themselves as runners. The article profiles one devoted runner who makes it his mission to recruit teammates:

As companies around Chicago sign up workers for races . . . other Dr. Shalhavs likely will be sticking their heads in cubicles and trying to give non-runners a taste of their addiction. Aficionados expect that at least a few of the runners who try a race for the first time this summer or watch from the curb might find themselves inducted into the runners club. Before long, they'll be throwing around lingo like "fartleks" as they talk about doing speed work, and logging the miles they've run in a particular shoe.

Co-workers are "initially like, 'What do you want? Leave me alone,' " Dr. Shalhav says. "Then slowly but surely they're getting into running."

He's persuaded a number of residents, fellows and other co-workers to join him in races, recently taking a group to Indianapolis for the half-marathon that is part of the Indy 500 festival.

One of the best parts about this story is the way it captures the contagious zeal of “obsessed” runners who recruit co-workers to join them on the trail. We invite runners around the U.S. – “obsessed” or not – to grab a few friends and run this Fall for healthy schools.

You can learn more or register online at our Charity Athletics Team page.

Happy Birthday, Healthy Schools Campaign!

by Rochelle Davis, HSC Founding Executive Director

This week marks the sixth anniversary of a Healthy Schools Summit that was organized by Generation Green (the organization that I was working for six years ago), Safer Pest Control Project, and Citizen Action/Illinois. (HSC Board member Lynda DeLaforgue is also Co-Director of Citizen Action/Illinois - she has been here from the beginning!)

Two hundred people from 75 organizations plus a group of high school students attended the summit.  Speakers included Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, Congressman Danny Davis, Ron Burke (now Deputy Director at Illinois EPA) and Dr. Vicky Persky. 

This event was followed by a similar event in Springfield and eventually gave birth to the Healthy Schools Campaign.   

It’s interesting to reflect on the ways that our organization continues to be shaped by this powerful event six years ago:

Student participation:  A group of Chicago public high school students attended the summit and provided dramatic first-hand testimony to some of the conditions they face.  In the last year, we have been able to reengage with students through the Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest. Just last week, we celebrated with culinary students at Chicago Vocational Career Academy when the healthy meal they designed was served in high school cafeterias throughout Chicago Public Schools.

Green Cleaning:  Kim Hall from Rochester Midland (now a sponsoring company of our Quick & Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools) attended the summit.  She introduced me to the concept of green cleaning and introduced me to Steve Ashkin. Steve is now the author of our Quick and Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools.

Latino Community Participation:  Idida Perez, the executive director of West Town Leadership United and our current partner on the Partnership to Reduce Disparities in Asthma and Obesity in Latino Schools, attended the summit.  When the Spanish-language TV station Univision covered the event, Idida became our on-the-spot media spokesperson. Our work in the Latino community continues to expand, particularly through the Parents United for Healthy Schools / Padres Unidos Para Escuelas Saludables coalition. Univision’s Enrique Rodriguez has been a wonderful supporter of our work, speaking at our Parents’ Rally for Healthy Schools and serving as master of ceremonies at our annual benefit, Cooking up Change.

Chicago Community Trust:  Chicago Community Trust gave a grant to help us organize the summit that led to HSC’s creation. Ada Mary Gugenheim attended the event and has been a strong supporter ever since.

On a personal level, the last six years have been very exciting and rewarding.  I feel very blessed with all of the friends and colleagues that I have made over the last six years.  I look forward to working with all of you as we continue to work toward making meaningful change.

Student-Designed School Lunch Served throughout Chicago Public High Schools

by Jean Saunders, HSC School Wellness Director

For culinary students at Chicago Vocational Career Academy (CVCA), the long-awaited day has finally arrived!

Today, the students’ menu of red beans and rice with smothered cabbage and candied carrots will be served at all high schools in the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) system. High school students around the city will enjoy a healthy meal that CVCA students created to meet high standards for nutrition, taste and presentation.

The CVCA students won this honor by winning first place in the Cooking up Change Healthy Cooking Contest at HSC’s annual benefit in October. We couldn’t be more proud of the students, and are delighted to share the thoughts of three members of the winning team:

My experience in the Healthy Schools Campaign competition was a very great learning experience. I was able to obtain more confidence in myself as well as in my future. This campaign put me in a “quick thinking on my feet” situation; when I look back on it, I can applaud myself and my teammates who all played a major role in our success as a group. I really can say that throughout the whole competition I felt an exciting feeling as if I knew the outcome would be worth it.  ~ Ariel Griffin

Being a part of the winning team, which is Chicago Vocational, of the Healthy Schools Campaign is one of the greatest feelings a person in the food industry could gain. The day of the competition was nerve-wracking because of the way it started and the challenges along the way: at first our bus was an hour late which made us late for the competition, and when we were on our way to the competition, our food was spilling. But when they announced our school as the winners my teacher Mr. Fuller jumped into my arms because he knew how hard we worked to get those trophies. But to know that our food is going to be in every CPS school is one of the greatest accomplishments that our school could ever gain.  ~ Kevin Williams

I am really appreciative of the opportunity to compete in the healthy cooking competition. I’m elated that we won first place, for the appetizer and entrée portion of the contest. The whole competition was a great experience, including the work that was done prior to the competition. This is definitely an experience that I will never forget. I hope that the entrée is a great success on the Chartwells menu. Thanks to the judges for making the right decision, we (Chicago Vocational Career Academy – Culinary department) will make sure you are happy you chose us as the winners.  ~ Alexia R. McLaurin

Many congratulations to the culinary students at CVCA! 

Applauding Healthy School Food in Chicago – And Creative Student Chefs

by Rochelle Davis, HSC Founding Executive Director

It was truly a delight to meet the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) culinary students and teachers who participated in the healthy cooking contest at Cooking up Change, HSC’s annual benefit, and to check out the dishes they entered in the "healthy school lunch" category of the contest.

The category was filled with delicious, healthy meals:  a whole wheat chicken burrito with Mexican rice, roasted sweet potato soup with southern herb greens and smoked turkey, and the winning lunch, red beans and rice with smothered apples and candied carrots.

This was even more exciting because the students’ work to create healthy school lunches is part of a much larger school food transformation at CPS.

The school meals that students prepared met the "Balanced Choices" nutrition guidelines designed by CPS partner Chartwells-Thompson to set a high standard of health and nutrition for school meals. CPS high school students can choose a meal prepared to meet these guidelines every day – and in Jan., they will be able to choose the school meal designed by their peers when the winning lunch is served throughout CPS high schools.

In the past year, CPS food service has made other impressive changes, adding more fruits and vegetables while removing trans fats and whole milk. Deep fryers are no longer used by any elementary schools in the district or by 55 high schools, and the fryers will not be used in any CPS schools by 2009.

These changes will make a very real difference for the hundreds of thousands of children who consume the majority of their daily calories at school, and are even more impressive when I consider that CPS serves nearly 72 million school meals each year for less than a dollar per meal for food.

Involving students in a dialog about making healthy eating choices – as with the healthy cooking contest – will make the changes more relevant and will help pave the way for success.  I applaud CPS for taking these impressive steps for students’ health.

Racing for Healthy Schools

Today we have a blog from HSC's senior development officer Cheryl Kaplan, who organized our first marathon team.

For the first year ever, HSC has organized a team of athletes to run The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon.  The thrilling world class race is just days away, this Sunday, Oct. 7. 

Serving as Honorary Team Captain is Peter Sagal, host of NPR’s weekly news quiz show, "Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!," heard on 450 public stations nationwide.  If you’re planning to attend the marathon expo this Friday, October, 5 at McCormick Place, come hear Peter Sagal at the main stage at 3:20 p.m.  He’ll be talking about his midlife transition to marathon runner and why he is supporting Healthy Schools Campaign. (While you’re there, drop by to visit us in booth 254!)   If you’d like to make a donation to support Peter Sagal's run, click here.

Our 34 runners are coming to Chicago from coast to coast and as far away as Switzerland.  This dedicated group of fundraiser athletes has raised a cumulative total of $23,500 to date to benefit our cause, and they are continuing to raise money even in these last days before the race. Click here to make a contribution to support our team. 

If you’re planning to be a spectator along the 26.2 mile course, look for our runners wearing their Healthy Schools Campaign race shirts and let them know you appreciate their efforts.  We’ll be cheering at a rally station on Jackson near Damen on "Charity Mile" right after mile 15 of the race. You can get there easily via the CTA Blue line Illinois Medical District station. HSC will be in Spot #20 of Charity Mile  Come join us! 

We’re already looking ahead to 2008 when we’ll be supporting runners in the Boston Marathon, The ING New York City Marathon (no lottery or qualifying times necessary when you run for HSC!), and races in Chicago and other major U.S. cities.   If you’d like to run in these races, walk a 5K or 10K, compete in a triathlon, or take on any type of personal challenge on behalf of Healthy Schools Campaign, we will help you achieve your goals. 

We are also looking for corporate sponsors for our 2008 marathon program.  Let us know if your company would like to be part of this exciting national program.  Contact cheryl@healthyschoolscampaign.org or call (312) 419-1810 to learn more. 

Meet our team for The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon!   

New Sponsors and Celebrity Judges for Cooking up Change!

Our team of sponsors and celebrity judges for Cooking up Change is growing to include an even more prestigious group of leaders dedicated to making a difference for children’s health –- and hosting a fabulous party!

Be sure to check out our new Cooking up Change website for a profile of this week’s featured celebrity judge, Chef Clifford Rome of the Parkway Ballroom, or our featured prize, a guest appearance on Spatulatta!

Celebrity judges for Cooking up Change include: 

Carol Moseley-Braun, former Democratic Senator from Illinois and the first African-American woman ever elected to the U.S. Senate

Louise Esaian, Food Service Director, Chicago Public Schools

Chef Lisa Gershenson, manager of Chicago's Community Kitchens, a program operated by the Greater Chicago Food Depository to teach underemployed adults food preparation skills

Carol Haddix, Food Guide Editor for the Chicago Tribune and editor of three recent Chicago Tribune cookbooks

Chef Monique Hooker, a chef, teacher and author with a lifelong enthusiasm for food and travel

Chef Mary McMahon, a Jean Banchet winner for best Pastry Chef, creator of inventive desserts for restaurant throughout Chicago, and instructor at the Illinois Institute of Art

Gwen Macsai, award-winning writer and radio producer for National Public Radio

Chef Clifford Rome, President of Parkway Ballroom and Rome’s Joy, the exclusive caterer of the Ballroom

New sponsors include For Her Information Media; Chartwells-Thompson Hospitality; Holland & Knight LLP; Illinois Federation of Teachers; Juicing for Jocks, LLC; Primera Engineers, Ltd.; SEIU Illinois Council; University Professionals of Illinois, Local 4100 IFT/AFT/AFL-CIO; and Midwest Academy.

Interested in getting tickets, becoming a sponsor, or learning more? Check out the Cooking up Change site!

Celebrity Judges and Sponsors Sign on to Cooking up Change

by Tara Kennon, HSC Writer & Publications Coordinator

Let’s be honest: We’ve been excited about Cooking up Change, HSC’s annual benefit, for quite awhile now.

And how could we not be?

It’s always a fabulous party with truly great food and even better people. We’ve secured an amazing and incredibly unique architectural space – Salvage One – for this year’s event on Oct. 18. And we know the live and silent auction prizes are going to be out of this world.

As if that’s not enough, this year we’ve added a new twist to our annual celebration: a healthy cooking contest for high school students enrolled in the Chicago Public Schools Culinary Arts Program.

Guests at Cooking up Change will have the opportunity to taste the students’ award-winning creations as they mingle with friends, colleagues and celebrity judges, and cast a ballot for a special healthy cooking contest audience award.

Now, Cooking up Change is shaping up to include an exciting team of sponsors and celebrity judges for the contest!

Sponsors include Applegate Farms, School Health Corporation, American Institute of Architects, Canon Distributing, University of Illinois at Chicago, Organic Valley, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, and United Supply; celebrity judges include Gwen Macsai, Carol Moseley Braun, and chefs Monique Hooker, Clifford Rome, Lisa Gershenson, and Mary McMahon.

We're thrilled about this extraordinary team and will be introducing you to our judges and sponsors as the celebration draws closer!

If you’re even a little bit as excited as we are about this event, be sure to visit our Cooking up Change website to learn more. You can also check out photos from Cooking up Change 2006 and Cooking up Change 2005.

To learn more about joining the host committee, becoming a sponsor, or donating auction items, please contact Claire Marcy at (312) 419-1810 or claire@healthyschoolscampaign.org.

Call for Action: Healthy Schools & NCLB

How does No Child Left Behind affect healthy schools? How can a conference call be interesting and concise?

Communities for Quality Education, in partnership with Healthy Schools Campaign and the Illinois Education Association, connected over a hundred education advocates with Rep. Phil Hare on Monday to discuss education and the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law in a virtual town hall telephone forum.

This was a great opportunity to hear from and speak to one of our leaders who is making important education decisions in Washington.

When we think of NCLB, we don't always immediately think of healthy schools issues – but the two are linked very closely. Today, NCLB affects nearly every aspect of the school experience  – from funding to recess to food education – and we absolutely need to help our legislators understand this connection.

And to be honest, when I think of telephone forums, I don't always immediately think of organized, engaging discussions – but this call changed my mind. The "virtual town hall" was substantive, concise, well-organized, and a great opportunity to bring healthy schools issues to the NCLB agenda.

We're hosting another of these calls – this time with Rep. Peter Roskam – this Mon., May 21 from 7:30-8:00 p.m. Click here to learn more or sign up for the call.

Why is this event so deserving of our time and attention?

Substance: HSC and many individual callers were able to speak with Rep. Hare about the importance of physical education, physical activity, nutrition and better facilities in achieving academic success. We also were able to introduce Rep. Hare to the importance of including a “learning environment index” in NCLB to make sure schools have the resources to make improvements in their facilities.

Technology: The technology that connects hundreds of individuals on telephone forums is, in a word, great. It’s easy, it includes numerous interactive polls where individuals vote with their keypads so we know what others are thinking, and it’s an effective way to interact with people who are often far away. Callers can ask questions through a moderator, and background noise is automatically muted so we didn't all listen to each other's colleagues chatting in the background.

Organization: This call was moderated by Communities for Quality Education and they did a great job of maintaining the flow of the call. This was no “go through all your old emails” type of conference call:  it was participatory, engaging, and very interesting.

Rep. Hare was articulate and well-versed in the subject of No Child Left Behind. I was impressed not only by his knowledge of the issues but also by his willingness to listen, engage, and bring community concerns to the discussion.

I hope others will join us when we host our second call with Rep. Roskam on May 21 at 7:30 pm Central Time.

Visit www.call4action.net to sign up now.

Why I Run the Chicago Marathon - And Why You Should Join Me

by Mark Bishop, HSC Deputy Director

Noting last week that the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon just closed registration after reaching its capacity of 45,000 runners -- six months before the race date of Oct. 7 -- Chicago Tribune columnist Julie Deardorff wrote:

If you missed the deadline, you can still get into the event through one of the event’s 85 charity partners, affiliated international tour groups or the Chicago Area Runners Association (CARA).

My question is: Why would you want to?

The marathon is just too crowded, especially if you're a serious runner, but not good enough to get an elite start. It's like the insanely congested LaSalle Bank Shamrock Shuffle 8K, which now draws 30,000 people but only gives seeded starts to those who have run a LaSalle Bank sponsored qualifier.

First, let me get it out of the way -- Healthy Schools Campaign is one of the charity partners and we have slots available for those who want to join HSC and our honorary captain, NPR's Peter Sagal, running on behalf of improving school health. (Come join us -- volunteers and supporters, as well as runners, are welcomed!)

Second, I have a very different perspective on the Chicago Marathon. In 2002, though, I agreed with Julie completely. I had run enough marathons that I didn't want to deal with the crowds of Chicago anymore. I was committed to running only small marathons, which have an excitement of their own.

In October 2002, I ran the Milwaukee Marathon and loved it. It was a beautiful and relatively intimate race. I loved ending the one-way race at the lakefront.

The Chicago Marathon was taking place the next weekend, so I decided to go downtown to check it out -– confident that I would be happy to just watch and stay out of the huge, crowded race.

What ended up happening wasn't what I expected. As a runner, I felt that I was missing something by not participating in the Chicago Marathon. I could hardly stand to just watch while the runners raced by with the incredibly motivating and contagious energy that only this kind of race gives you.

The Chicago Marathon has such great positive energy that it's impossible to not get caught up in it. I really wanted to be in the race that day. I decided that the only way I could not run the Chicago Marathon was if I was out of town so I wouldn't feel first-hand the disappointment of being a non-participant.

So this year I'll be one of the 45,000 training for my 11th Chicago Marathon (and my 14th marathon overall -- In addition to Milwaukee, I've also run Anchorage and Cincinnati).

Why would I want to join the masses? Because there's nothing else like it. For me, the question is how anyone could resist.

UPDATE MAY 1: HSC has filled its bibs for the marathon. However, if you are already registered and would like to join HSC's charity team, or volunteer on the day of the race, please contact Cheryl Kaplan. Donations and sponsors are also welcomed (here's the contributors' site). Thanks for your support!