by Rochelle Davis, HSC President and CEO
When Chicago Community Trust President Terry Mazany was appointed as interim CEO of the Chicago Public Schools, I assumed his brief tenure would account for little more than a small asterisk in the annals of CPS history. Little did I realize that in five short months, one man could have such a profound impact on the direction of the third largest school district in the country.
Mr. Mazany clearly has a deep understanding of the connection between learning and health, as demonstrated by his accomplishments in his short tenure. His accomplishments include:
- Creation of a new health goal for the school improvement plans (SIPAAA), fundamentally enhancing the definition of a successful school to include the ways that a school supports student health and wellness
- Implementation of a health-promoting breakfast in the classroom program for all elementary schools
- Establishment of a new recess policy which streamlined the process to allow schools to include recess in the school day
On June 7, 20 CPS schools were recognized for achieving the high standards for food, physical activity and nutrition education set by the HealthierUS School Challenge, with many more schools making changes to work toward these high standards. Mr. Mazany’s leadership, along with that of CPS Board President Mary Richardson Lowry and Director of Nutrition Support Services Louise Esaian, has been essential for supporting these schools’ journey to wellness.
We know that Mr. Mazany will continue to show leadership in promoting health and wellness as president of the Chicago Community Trust and as chair of the Civic and Business advisory committee for Chicago’s Go for the Gold campaign.
As we look forward to working with the new CPS administration, we want to pause and offer our sincere thanks for Mr. Mazany’s achievements and the significant steps he has taken to connect health with academic achievement for all Chicago school children.
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Plus! See video of Terry Mazany's address at the Citywide Forum on Health Disparties and Education here.
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