Healthy Schools Campaign

Media Share a Taste of Cooking up Change!

 
Richards student Gerardo Garcia is interviewed by ABC news.

On Jan. 24, a healthy school lunch deisnged by high school culinary students was serverd to more than 20,000 students across Chicago. Healthy Schools Campaign was thrilled to enjoy lunch that day with the culinary students of Richards Career Academy who created the menu, a tasty lunch of Afro-Caribe Plancha, Soup of Sunshine and Citrus Crunch Salad. The meal won first place in HSC's Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest. Janey Thornton, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services, traveled from Washington, DC to congratulate the students.

The media coverage of this meaningful lunch at Richards Career Academy added to the excitement of the day for students, advocates and all who care about school food. Check out some of the media highlights below!

Across the USA News from Every State
1.25.2011 | USA Today

Richards chefs dish about winning cooking contest
1.25.2011 | The Mash

USDA official visits Chicago, talks about food deserts
1.25.2011 | WBEZ

Chicago high school student chef winners serve up classmates
1.24.2011 | AP

Richards Career Academy chefs
1.24.2011 | Univision

CPS students win student chef contest
1.24.2011 | WGN-TV

Richards' student chefs win citywide cook-off
1.24.2011 | ABC 7 Chicago

High School Students’ Meal To Be Served Systemwide
1.24.2011 | WBBM-TV CBS 2 Chicago

Many thanks to all who took part in this exciting event, and congratulations once again to the talented student chefs!

Washington Post Editorial: 'How Did Obesity Become a Partisan Fight?'

A recent Washington Post editorial by Fred Hiatt does a great job of explaining why childhood obesity is more than a partisan issue. He addresses backgound on -- and objections to -- First Lady Obama's Let's Move campaign; statistics that reinforce the urgency of the obesity epidemic; and why working for positive, healthy change is an issue that goes beyond partisan interests.

You can check out the full text of this excellent editorial here. In the meantime, here's an excerpt: 

The obesity epidemic is a genuine public health emergency, with vast implications for the nation's well-being, economy and even national security. And yet, could anyone really be against children eating healthier food and getting more exercise? ...

Well, yes, if Michelle Obama is for it, someone will be against it. Someone like Glenn Beck, for example, who was moved to rail against carrot sticks, or Sarah Palin, who warned that Obama wants to deprive us all of dessert.

And when you look a little deeper, it's not surprising that a crusade seemingly beyond questioning would become a political battle. Interests that might feel threatened by Let's Move include the fast-food industry, agribusiness, soft-drink manufacturers, real estate developers (because suburban sprawl is implicated), broadcasters and their advertisers (of sugary cereals and the like), and the oil-and-gas and automotive sectors (because people ought to walk more and drive less).

Throw in connections to the health-care debate (because preventive services will be key to controlling the epidemic), race (because of differential patterns of obesity) and red state-blue state hostilities (the reddest states tend to be the fattest), and it turns out there are few landmines that Michelle Obama didn't trip by asking us all to shed a few pounds.

Insinuations from her critics notwithstanding, Obama has not endorsed nanny-state or controversial remedies such as ending sugar subsidies, imposing soda-pop taxes or zoning McDonald's out of certain neighborhoods. Instead, she is pushing for positive, voluntary change: more recess and physical activity, more playgrounds, more vegetable gardens, fresher food in schools and grocery stores, better education on the issue for parents and children.

All of this makes total sense, and historians will marvel (much as they will at climate-change deniers) that anyone could doubt it.

Read the full editorial in the Washington Post here.

Bring the Documentary Film Lunch Line to Your Community

We've been talking quite a bit this year about Lunch Line, the documentary film on the political history of school food that features the 2009 winning team from HSC's Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest. Now, we're pleased to offer opportunities to screen this thought-provoking film in your community!

What is Lunch Line?

The documentary film Lunch Line, created by Uji Films in association with Applegate Farms, takes a new look at the school lunch program by exploring its past, its current challenges and opportunities for the future. In the film, leaders from all sides of the school food debate -- including government officials, school food service experts, activists and students -- weigh in on the program and discuss ways to continue nourishing America’s children.

Part of the film focuses on six Chicago students who won first place in HSC’s Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest. Their journey from the school cafeteria to Capitol Hill parallels the dramatic transformation of school lunch from a patchwork of local anti-hunger efforts to a robust national program. The film tracks the behind-the-scenes details of school lunch and childhood hunger from key moments in the 1940s, 1960s and 1980s to the present, revealing political twists, surprising alliances and more common ground than many might realize.

How can I bring Lunch Line to my community?

 The W. K. Kellogg Foundation is generously covering the licensing fees associated with screening the film in a number of low-income and minority communities across the U.S. To apply to bring the a screening to your community, click here.

Who is eligible to screen the film?

Community organizations, non-profits, students and educators are encouraged to apply to bring the film to your community for a screening! Limited opportunities to screen the film are available.

How can I apply?

To apply, please complete the application form here.

When are applications due? When can we screen the film?

A limited number of site licenses to screen the film are available. Applications will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis. Please allow at least two weeks for your request to be processed.

Where can I learn more about the film?

We invite you to learn more about Lunch Line through the film trailer, a review in The Atlantic and a high school student’s review.

HSC Congratulates Board Member Enrique Rodriguez for Winning an Emmy Award!

HSC extends a big congratulations to Enrique Rodriguez for receiving a prestigious Emmy award earlier this month in the Chicago/Midwest division! The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awarded Enrique this Emmy for reporting WGBO Univision's special series about a 21-year-old who received a heart transplant just three weeks after putting his name on the waiting list. We've been extremely fortunate to have Enrique's support as a member of our board of directors; as a dynamite master of ceremonies for Cooking up Change; and as an inspiring community voice for healthier schools.

 
Enrique Rodriguez receiving an Emmy award accompanied by his wife and son.

Plus: Check out this great story Enrique reported in Nov. 2009 about the student chefs of Richards Career Academy who competed in Cooking up Change and traveled to Washington, DC to present their healthy school meal to Congress!

New National Attention Shines on Through Your Lens Competition

Although students learn best in healthy, safe school environments, many schools lack the funding for even basic building maintenance. Last year, to raise awareness of school building conditions, we asked students to photograph their schools -- and they delivered. Vivid photos and poignant stories poured in from across the country, giving us an honest look at the broken, beautiful, chaotic or inspiring learning environments. This photo contest, Through Your Lens, was created in partnership with the 21st Century School Fund and Critical Exposure. It concluded with a celebrated exhibit on Capitol Hill and a book of student work.

Now we're gearing up for our second Through Your Lens competition in February 2011, and we're thrilled to see more national attention for this issue. Earlier this month, the online magazine Slate featured Through Your Lens as part of its own initiative to reinvent the American classroom:

The "Through Your Lens" exhibit features an awful lot of peeling paint and broken windows—the kind of environment you wouldn't want your kid in for an hour, much less a childhood. But the photographers also highlight examples of spaces that work, flashes of color and sunlight and order in otherwise chaotic surroundings.

We're proud to be part of this national conversation, and we're looking forward to the February launch of our next Through Your Lens competition! Be sure to visit the contest site and enter your email address to be notified when the 2011 contest opens!

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

HSC In the News: Tilden Student & Lunch Line Filmmakers Featured on Chicago's WGN News

By Mark Bishop, Deputy Director

The new documentary Lunch Line gives an interesting and accessible perspective on a surprisingly policy-heavy topic: school food. The film features the 2009 winners of HSC's Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest as they travel to Capitol Hill to speak up for healthy school food.  We were excited to see the filmmakers with Tilden Career Academy student Cari Smith on WGN discussing the movie, school lunches and the winning meal at Cooking up Change:

>

 

Student Perspective: Documentary Film Lunch Line

Today we have a blog by HSC intern Christine Andersen, who is beginning her sophomore year in high school. Christine attended the Chicago premiere of the documentary film Lunch Line hosted by Uji Films, Applegate Farms and HSC. Thanks to Christine for sharing this perspective!

Today, HSC founding executive director Rochelle Davis will take part in a  panel discussion at the Washington, DC premiere of the film along with filmmakers Ernie Park and Michael Graziano, Cooking up Change National Honorary Co-Chairs Karen Duncan and Christie Vilsack, DC school food director Jeffrey Mills and Janey Thornton of the USDA.

Plus: Check out recent reviews of the film and view a trailer online.

--

by Christine Andersen

This summer, I had the opportunity to see a screening of Lunch Line, a humorous and heartwarming yet informative documentary on the many current issues concerning school lunch. Part of the film features  last year’s Cooking up Change winners, the students of Tilden High School here in Chicago.

The film interviewed each of the winning students from Tilden, who actually joined us for the Chicago premiere of the film that night. I loved hearing each of them share their stories and seeing how much Cooking up Change meant to the students and their families. The clips of the students on their long-awaited trip to Washington, DC were also fun to see.

One of these students, Cari,  shared her love for Twilight, a love which as a sophomore in high school I am very familiar with. The Uji Filmmakers were very creative in that they illustrated the partnership between two groups of legislators with different goals through brilliant drawings of vampires and werewolves. They showed that the school lunch program originated (and continues) through alliances that we would not always expect. When the parallels linking the history between these politicians and the mythical creatures in the Twilight world were drawn, I was blown away, as this was certainly the highlight of the movie for me.

But not only did Lunch Line document the success stories of these students, it informed the audience of what it will truly take to improve school lunches. There are some aspects to this long term undertaking that I had never even considered before.

For example, the film brought up a concept which was very new to me: the idea that school meals have a requirement for a minimum number of calories but not a maximum. The school lunch program was officially started in 1946 as a response to hunger and the fact that too many school-age children were malnourished. When they established the program, they included this calorie minimum to ensure that students had adequate food to prevent hunger. Today, with obesity on the rise, this minimum calorie requirement seems out of date.

I was astounded by the fact that even with all of the evidence we have about child obesity, there is no cap on how many calories can be in each meal. Hopefully, when the Child Nutrition Act is reauthorized, schools will be able to, among other things, eliminate this minimum calorie count. A school lunch should not be something that is based solely on a nutrition label, but truly what kids are eating.

I certainly recommend this film to everyone, regardless of their level of knowledge about school food history and politics. After seeing this film, I surprised myself with how interested I had quickly become in a dispute I had never even thought about before.

Apps for Healthy Kids: Exercising Aliens, Smashing Donuts . . . and Teaching Healthy Habits

By Mark Bishop, Deputy Director

I am fascinated by the intersection of technology and health. On one hand, we want to limit screen time for all of us -- we are already way too sedentary. However, we can use technology to educate, engage and encourage decisions that promote health. Take Dance Dance Revolution, Wii Fit, or even simple games that promote movement (like this one that my son tried on a cold winter day.) Technology is one more tool we can use to promote wellness.

A few months ago, the USDA launched a contest to encourage the development of health-promoting games: Apps for Healthy Kids. I loved the idea and I was looking forward to seeing what came out of it. Well, the entries are rolling in. And many of them are great.

The contest includes way too many  games for me to try out or even list. But I gave a few a whirl and I was impressed. I must admit that I’m partial to entries submitted by students rather than commercial interests.

So take a look at this one: Food Flight OS. It has beautiful drawings and is super creative: you need to feed and exercise an alien to help him get home.

Or how about a gross-out visual of how much sugar, fat and salt is in your food the in Smash Your Food game? (It is really satisfying to watch a hamburger getting mushed up!)

Or how about Food Hero, where you need to feed your character a balanced meal, exercise to gain strength, and buy equipment so you can get better and stronger?

Be sure to check out the entries that are coming in and vote for your favorites. Maybe the next great developers will make their start here. Maybe we’ll see our kids online learning about health and wellness. (And maybe, at the very least, we’ll all get to see what it looks like to smash up a jelly donut without having to get our own hands sticky.)

Plus: Check out our related post from December ‘09: Gaming for Health: Can Online Games Transform 'Tween Eating Habits?

Advocates, Students Challenge Top Chefs to School Food Cook-Off -- With a Little Less Lunch Money

Wednesday’s episode of Bravo’s "Top Chef" featured a challenge that high school students nationwide take on each year in the Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest, and which food service directors face daily in schools: to create a healthy, tasty lunch on a tight budget. But the budget that the students and the food service staff face is much tighter -- about a third of that given to Top Chef contestants. Can the lunches that Bravo's Top Chefs create stand up to those created by high school students with an even smaller food allowance?

"The idea was pretty cool, but I wonder what they would have done if they only had a dollar like we did," said Cari Smith, a junior studying culinary arts in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). Cari and her classmates at Tilden  high school won the third annual Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest with a lunch that can be prepared for about a dollar.

Bravo's Top Chefs were given a budget of $2.60 per meal, close to the amount that schools receive to serve a lunch but nearly three times the amount that schools are actually able to spend on ingredients. After accounting for overhead, labor and the myriad expenses of running a food program, the amount that most food service directors have to work with is less than a dollar. (In large urban districts, it's generally closer to $0.70.)

"I'm thrilled to see chefs of this stature take on school food," said Rochelle Davis, founding executive director of the Healthy Schools Campaign, the not-for-profit organization that hosts Cooking up Change. "I'd love to see the contestants turn the competition up a notch and take on the challenge of creating these lunches with the same constraints that the students face in Cooking up Change -- really the challenges that school staff face every day in trying to serve nutritious, appealing meals to our nation's schoolchildren."

In Cooking up Change, teams from across the U.S. have met the budget challenge while creating meals that exceed high nutrition standards and only use ingredients available to food service. Winning meals from the contest have been served in schools across the country and in the U.S. House of Representatives cafeteria, which sold out of the meal Cari and her classmates designed. The meal has also been integrated into the lunch menu for Chicago Public Schools, where it is regularly prepared on a real school budget and wins a thumbs-up from other high school students.

How does this meal compare with the Top Chefs' champion meal? 

Cooking up Change winning meal: Chicken-vegetable jambalaya Cucumber salad Jalapeno cornbread

Top Chef winning meal: Pork tacos Black bean cake with crispy sweet potato Roasted corn salad Caramelized sweet potato sherbet.

"No matter how talented or determined you are, there's only so much you can do with a dollar," said Davis. "Schools need more money for better food. Seeing the students in Cooking up Change pull together lunch on such a shoestring really brings the issue home. Giving schools more than two dollars for ingredients like we saw on Top Chef would make an unbelievable difference in their ability to provide the kind of fresh, healthy food that supports kids' health and learning."

Davis has extended an invitation to the contestants of Top Chef to bring their culinary prowess to a cook-off with the aspiring chefs of Cooking up Change.

"It's a friendly challenge," she said. "But it's also a chance for the chefs to stand alongside our nation's students and say that one dollar is not enough."

If the chefs accept, Cari and her teammates may be willing to reveal some veteran tips.

"Plan out a budget and stick with your budget," she advised. "And pay attention to the nutrition guidelines. You have to be really creative."

Top Chef DC Taking on School Food: But Why the Extra Cash?

By Mark Bishop, Deputy Director

It's hard not to get excited when you see an issue you care about get elevated in the media, so you can imagine how I felt when I heard that Top Chef is taking on childhood obesity and specifically school food.

But what happens when the media portrayal elevates information that's just wrong?

According to ObamaFoodOrama, the chefs competing to create a "healthy, kid-friendly meal" in a local school kitchen will be doing so on a budget:

Chefs can only spend $2.68 per child, which is the reimbursement rate schools receive for each child who is eligible for free lunch under the federal program.

I'm glad to see the chefs have a budget, but I have to object to the amount.

Sure, schools get reimbursements of $2.68 for each free meal they serve, but that's not close to the amount that school food directors have available for ingredients for each meal. As we've discussed before on this blog, that $2.68 has to cover the cost of overhead, labor, administrative costs, maintenance, cleaning, transportation. . . the list goes on. When it comes to spending on ingredients, the amount that most food service directors have to work with is less than a dollar. (In large urban districts, it's generally closer to $0.70.)

Unless Top Chef is going to have its competitors get into the details of covering overhead and systems costs, it's only fair to give them the same funding the schools are able to spend on ingredients.

Every year, we engage with teams of students at the Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest. We challenge them to create a healthy school meal on a dollar's worth of food ingredients, and they come up with some creative and healthy stuff. Yes, they all wish they had more to spend, but that's the challenge that schools deal with everyday. If you can do this, or this or this with a limited budget and ingredients, imagine if you had an extra 50 cents, or even a dollar.

Getting that extra dollar per meal for school food could require an extra $20 billion per year of funding in the Child Nutrition Act. And in one fell swoop, Bravo gave schools an extra $1.70.

Chef Ann Cooper was right on the money when said on the Slow Cook:

Perhaps instead of restaurant chefs trying to cook a meal for $2.68, we should have 'Lunch Ladies' competing to showcase what’s actually possible when we cook fresh food from scratch for our kids. After that, let’s give the professional chefs the USDA commodity food to deal with.

With this show, Bravo has a real opportunity to raise awareness of the significant funding problems in our school food system. So maybe this reality show could be just a little more real.

And the reality is that right now, Congress has an opportunity to do something about that problem. The Child Nutrition Act is up for reauthorization and both the House and Senate have introduced legislation with proposed funding that falls short of making healthy school food -- and kids' health -- a priority. Take a moment to raise your voice and urge Congress to provide adequate funds for healthy meals.

Student Chefs of Chicago Vocational Career Academy Showcase Skills on ABC Morning Show

The student chefs of Chicago Vocational Career Academy, who placed third in HSC's 2009 Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest -- performed a cooking demonstration this week on the ABC-7 Chicago morning show!

Team members whipped up oven-roasted tilapia and vegetables with lemon-herb butter and showed off the Cavalier Cooler lemonade they created in a culinary class. You can see the video of their cooking demo below and check out the recipe here. Congratulations to the student chefs!

"What's on Your Plate?" Film Takes on Food Justice in Kid-Sized Bites

Today we have a guest blog from HSC friend Melissa Graham of Purple Asparagus and Monogramme Events & Catering. (Melissa is also the author of an HSC Friday Recipe blog on strawberry pancakes!)

The Food Revolution is upon us.

With Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign and the success of Jamie Oliver’s recent foray in to American reality tv, our collective consciousness about food has been raised. Parents and children from all over want to know what’s in their food.  My non-profit, Purple Asparagus, and MyFoodshed.com have teamed up to host a series of screenings of a film intended to answer just that question. 

WHAT'S ON YOUR PLATE? follows two eleven-year-old multi-racial city kids as they explore their place in the food chain.  The girls address questions regarding the origin of the food they eat, how it's cultivated, how many miles it travels from the harvest to their plate, how it’s prepared, who prepares it, and what is done afterward with the packaging and leftovers. They visit the usual supermarkets, fast food chains, and school lunchrooms. But they also check into innovative sustainable food system practices by going to farms, greenmarkets, and community supported agriculture programs.  They discover that these programs both help struggling farmers to survive on the one hand and provide affordable, locally-grown food to communities on the consumer end, especially to lower-income urban families.

WHAT’S ON YOUR PLATE? addresses sustainability in all of its facets taking on questions of food justice and environmental impact in kid-sized bites.  The movie is fun, joyous, and inspiring while still taking an uncompromising look at the problems inherent in our existing food system.

All screenings are free and open to the public.  At each, there will be conversation sessions led by healthful food advocates and farmers where you can learn about how you can effect positive change to the world of food and make what’s on your plate and on those of others better.

For a full list of screenings in the Chicago area, click here. 

Not in the Chicago area? Click here for a map of screenings nationwide. 

--

Purple Asparagus is a member supported 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to bringing families back to the table by promoting all the things associated with good eating, eating that’s good for the body and the planet.  We teach families and children about healthy, sustainable eating in schools and at farmers’ markets.  To learn more, please check out our site www.purpleasparagus.com.

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution: What's Next? (or: Are You Angry?)

by Mark Bishop, Deputy Director

I've now watched the full season of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, and I must admit that the show mesmerized me. Yes, it is reality TV. Yes, much of the drama was manufactured. And I have to admit: the dramatic music drove me nuts. But fundamentally, Jamie educated, motivated and possibly angered millions (or at least 519,000 at the last count) of people about the condition and importance of school food.

If you watched the show, it wasn't hard to feel compassion for everyone at the school Jamie featured. People were hungry for change -- once they realized that change was needed and felt empowered to be part of the solution.

The show also left many people mad at the UDSA for providing schools with unhealthy food. As Toby Wollin wrote over at Fire Dog Lake:

What IS this food that is in her warehouse and the cold storage facility? Things such as chicken nuggets, hamburgers, french fries, fruit packed in syrup that are priced basically so cheaply that no school district can possibly resist it. THAT is what is on the USDA list. That is what THEY are buying and providing for the schools. This is not food bought directly from farmers; this is processed junk. Filled with chemicals, stabilizers, and (shall we say it once more?) corn and soy in every form imaginable and produced by mega-corporations such as ConAgra and Archer Daniels Midland.

However, I was left a bit angry in a different way. I was angry at three things:

1. School have so little to spend on healthy food;
2. Unhealthy food is so cheap, and;
3. School leaders are accountable for their impact on education, but not their impact on kids' health.

And for each of these items, we need to make change.

Let me explain what I mean.

First, if you've read this blog before, you know that schools only have about $2.68 per meal to spend on school food -- including labor and overhead. This leaves schools losing an average of $0.35 per meal served (and more than twice as much in large urban school districts). So school food programs end up with two options: they need to be underwritten with money from a district's education budget to break even, or they sell (generally unhealthy) foods outside the school meal program to cover their budget shortfalls. Let's face it: healthy food is more expensive to prepare than highly processed junk food is. And as long as we provide inadequate funding for school food, food service programs will be pressured to cut costs wherever possible and will have an incredibly hard time serving the food we'd prefer our kids to eat. Simply put, we need more money for better school food. We need the federal government to allocate more money to the school lunch program now.

Second, unhealthy food is too cheap. The problem with talking school food with the USDA is that it's just not as simple as it looks on the surface. We do need better food. However, most people don't realize that the USDA commodity program for schools has improved tremendously over the past years. Take a look at what they offer to schools, and you may be surprised. There's a lot of good stuff there that schools can use for healthy food prep. So it's a bit overly simplistic just to point to USDA and say they need to change what they offer schools in the commodity program. One of the biggest problems is that schools frequently send these commodity foods to middle men to turn them into processed food that is easier to prepare -- especially if the schools don't have adequate kitchen facilities.

At a more basic level is the fact that unhealthy food -- in schools, in stores, everywhere in our country -- is too cheap. Our government subsidizes corn and soy production through USDA programs to such an extent that these by-products have become ubiquitous in processed unhealthy foods. We need to shift ag policy (and USDA subsidies) to start supporting farmers who are growing fruits and vegetables, not just the current commodity crops. This would allow the marketplace to shift back toward whole food options.

Third, we need to hold our schools accountable for the health of our students. As our elected officials debate education policy, they (not just food and ag activists) need to recognize the important connection between health and learning. The current focus of education policy is on accountability for math and writing standards, but education policy is incomplete when it fails to include health outcomes as well. We need to have reportable accounting of how schools address nutrition and physical activity... because if principals and superintendents are not held accountable for these, they'll never prioritize them at the local school level.

So in the end, the Food Revolution got me angry, and I loved it. While the show is over, the revolution is just starting to kick in: now that so many more people are paying attention to school food issues, I'm looking forward to the discussions about the issues we're all upset about and ready to change.

I encourage you to sign Jamie's petition and help us all get more than 1 million signatures. But don't stop there. Help us get more money for school food. Work with us to change education policy to support healthy kids. And then be part of the discussion as ag policy is debated in our country. Our kids depend on it all.

-----
Follow up: Someone mentioned to me that I didn't include USDA nutrition standards in this list. True. I didn't. I'll tell you why. The nutrition standards sorely need updating, and the Institute of Medicine gave an excellent framework for how to make these changes. We will be seeing these implemented in the next few years, so this is happening. However, when these nutrition standards are updated, it will cost schools even more money to serve food that meets required standards. This means that getting more resources is the first and most important step to improving school food. We can have the perfect nutrition standards but without resources to implement them, we'll continue to serve our children unhealthy food.

Twenty(ish) Tweets for Healthy Schools

 

Healthy school food, green cleaning, sustainable schools, social justice: we love to keep up with the latest news and conversations about healthy schools issues on Twitter. Here are just a few of our favorite tweets from the past few days, with links to blogs, articles and conversations. Enjoy! 

Great collection of voices. Would have liked 2 see a school perspective though -> Making it Easier to Eat Local Food http://nyti.ms/9AVmyS

How a sidewalk can fight childhood obesity... as can walking and riding to school http://bit.ly/c7UIqQ

 Childhood obesity is also about communities and safety. Can't play if you're not safe | Slim Chances: A pound of cure http://bit.ly/9mxUJT

 Fried chicken buckets for the cure?!? Does anyone there see a disconnect here? http://bit.ly/9KGqln

 I have mixed feelings about this. Lunch should be for eating and socializing | Lunch program gets students into books http://bit.ly/d6Mxvr

 RT @thefoodies "I don’t think it ever works to tell people what they can’t eat." Interview w Alice Waters: http://bit.ly/cEvgzI

 Interesting thoughts on health vs local vs environment | Jamie Oliver Kind of Showcases Local Food in His Revolutionhttp://bit.ly/b4tvqG

 One challenge in schools is how long it takes to get food & v short lunch periods. Programs can help this... http://bit.ly/bxUOAN

 Some great ideas for feeding healthy food to your kids. And I LOVE the spiral slicer. I think I need one! http://bit.ly/dme6AR

 Green cleaning victory in Iowa! Let's green our schools! http://bit.ly/afJS1a #greenschools

 And it's the fish dog once again... Sometimes this stuff makes me laugh, but today I think I feel ill... http://bit.ly/bTQOqr

 Study shows exercise improves math and test scores! | Physical activity strengthens the brain http://bit.ly/biyi9N

 NPR Science Friday: improper cleaning a key factor in patient infection http://bit.ly/c0vAgf via @srmski

 ..obesity problem(s) are many and powerful... to solve, the response will have to be proportionate... http://bit.ly/9vTY8q via @ezraklein

 Happy Friday! Fun, easy, healthy recipe for the wknd: banana flats! Thanks to @weelicious for the inspiration http://bit.ly/bvSGOx

 @Weelicious, will you pack my lunch for me next week? Please? http://bit.ly/djDoMC

 I don't know what to think about this one, except DON'T mess with the lunch lady... NJ school serves up punishment http://bit.ly/bYE735

 Great news! RT @lisapjackson - Legislation filed today by Sen. Lautenberg is major step to improve our chemical laws & increase safety

 An argument for a Healthy Babies Campaign | Preventing childhood obesity from pregnancy on http://bit.ly/dkMdy1

 Head of nutrition for Chicago schools: "We are ready to do our part." Now we need Congress to do their part, too:http://bit.ly/94dmuf

 Agreed. We don't need antibacterials in our hand soaps... | Coming Clean on Soap Ingredients http://bit.ly/c6lYs6 #greencleaning

 RT @SaludToday: How does access to parks impact fitness? A new review shows how minorities have less access. http://bit.ly/cBE696

You can follow HSC on Twitter @healthyschools, or browse our Twitter feed here.

An Open Letter to Jamie Oliver

by Mark Bishop, HSC deputy director

Jamie:

While you don't know me, I already feel like I know you pretty well, thanks to your cookbook, television shows and activism. I'd like to take a moment and thank you for the great work you've done and applaud what I hope to be a change of course in the health of our country.  

On March 21 when your Food Revolution broadcast for the first time, you not only mesmerized your audience, but you became the public face of the school food reform movement. You did what no one else could: you opened the eyes of millions of parents, community leaders, school board members and more, and you educated them about the power and challenges and possibilities of school food.

After watching, I felt it was time to take the next step and join the revolution you discuss. So I did. And to do that I visited your web site and (electronically) signed my name to the following:

I support Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. America's kids need better food at school and better health prospects. We need to keep cooking skills alive.

Nice. I believe in that! What next? After signing on, I received this message:

Thank You! You are now part of the American Food Revolution!

I must admit that I felt a bit let down.

Your show is getting people mad, making people cry (my wife shed a few tears during last Friday's show) and motivating people for action. I think you are priming people to want to do more -- now it's time to give them a meaningful way to act.

I'd like to offer some unsolicited advice: You need to reach out to your audience of revolutionaries and ask them to take some concrete next steps. People are listening to you and want your guidance on substantive actions they can take for school food reform. Please -- take the opportunity to encourage real action that will change our country's school food policies. For example, it could make a real difference if you urged people to: 

1) Contact Congress. The federal government is debating the Child Nutrition Act now. We need the thousands (and eventually millions, I'm sure) of Jamie Oliver viewers to contact their legislators and tell them that we need more money for better school food. And the currently proposed six cents per meal just isn't enough of an increase.

2) Contact your state representatives and tell them how important school food is. Most states provide supplemental funding for the lunch and breakfast programs. In some states this is being cut. Let leaders know that school food is important and we need support at the state level too!

3) Get involved in your school. Schools that receive federal lunch money (most schools) are required to have a School Wellness Policy that includes a committee with parents. Get on that committee. If you don't have one, start one. Let your school know that this is a priority for you. While we need money and reform from the federal level, real change happens school by school as well. Get your school to set a goal as part of the HealthierUS Challenge.

4) Reach out to your school stakeholders. Contact local chefs, your principal, local businesses, your friends and fellow parents and get them involved. Get them to join your committee and expand your network of people helping improve lunches in your school.

Jamie, I'm part of the revolution now. But to make sure this revolution makes real change, we now need to mobilize your supporters.

You've created an incredible opportunity for action. Let's not let it slip away.

Your fellow school food revolutionary, 

Mark Bishop

P.S. I'm sure there are many more concrete things people can do to change the future of school food. What else would you add to the list?

Twenty Tweets for Healthy Schools!

Healthy school food, green cleaning, sustainable schools, social justice: we love to keep up with the latest news and conversations about healthy schools issues on Twitter. Here are just a few of our favorite tweets from the past few days, with links to blogs, articles and conversations. Enjoy! 

Students talk healthy food after a healthy lunch with Senator Durbin http://twitpic.com/1dobj0

Hunger, obesity and learning: Making the connection to social justice - http://bit.ly/aObdcl

The bunny on this year's White House Easter Egg Roll logo is so . . . athletic! Hooray for Let's Move! http://bit.ly/dvzaoQ

I couldn't agree more | Seven Reasons Why the Time is Ripe for School Lunch Reform http://bit.ly/bQ4G5Y

Education $ is at risk everywhere. All the more need for more $ for school food | Local Districts Cutting Teachers http://bit.ly/9vet9c

Dear Representative, I want you to help our school serve healthy food for lunch... http://bit.ly/cEy5cG #foodrevolution

Great article | RT @chefannc 'Food Revolution': A School Lunch Expert Reacts - Food - The Atlantic: http://bit.ly/cDM4uG

This is interesting - city giving magazine to all schools that teaches healthy eating and fun with cooking. http://bit.ly/9NH77z #obesity12:25 PM

Right on Jan! | Making Your Voice Heard on School Food http://bit.ly/awmn76 #foodrevolution

I can't stand these! @fedupwithlunch Lunchables: The Other School Lunch: "Mom, can I have that? Pleeeese...http://bit.ly/deEVPK

3 IL school districts saving money with wind power! http://bit.ly/cDtrjV #greenschools

Good article... RT @leezukor BPA: not yet banned, instead it's canned. tips for keeping it safe: http://bit.ly/9AGlNz

Bacon is back! | New study says a high-fat breakfast could be a healthy option. http://bit.ly/ahxreK

Has the concept of a neighborhood school outlived its years? Are walking and biking to school a thing of the past? http://bit.ly/bmJMpx

RT @classroomearth Watch Lisa Jackson's National Environmental Education Week Public Service Announcement http://bit.ly/cJBqQ7

RT @tomphilpott: Latest post: USDA food pyramid vs. reality http://bit.ly/a5xUov

We know but, important to see that research agrees -> Healthy Kids are Better Learners http://bit.ly/bPbKnw

From the land down under... Parents fume as school kids get sick from heaters http://bit.ly/9zWJyp

The often unseen but never unappreciated school custodian... http://bit.ly/dyx5g0 Keeping schools healthy and clean! A hearty thanks to all!

CT Governor announces $250,000 in funding to replace PCB laced caulking in schools http://bit.ly/a9oZ1y

Love this! RT @CMeNewsDaily Custodian's book teaches life lessons to children http://bit.ly/90qC7H

Karen Duncan at #CookingupChange briefing in DC: "Now is the time to act" - http://bit.ly/aC7mtx

You can follow HSC on Twitter @healthyschools, or browse our Twitter feed here.

"Healthy Bodies and Healthy Minds Go Hand in Hand:" Sen. Durbin on School Food and Learning, in the Chicago Sun-Times

The Chicago Sun-Times recently published an editorial by Sen. Dick Durbin on the importance of healthy school food for students' learning. Sen. Durbin discusses how his visit to a high school illustrated the need for increased federal funding for the school meal program so that students can eat food that truly fuels their academic success. This is an especially critical discussion as Congress begins work on reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act.

Sen. Durbin also recognizes the student chefs of Tilden High School, winners of HSC's Cooking up Change healthy cooking contest:

These students took home the top prize in a cooking competition that challenged them to create a school meal that meets strict dietary standards for only $1 per serving. In preparing their winning meal of vegetable and chicken jambalaya with spicy cheesy cornbread and a side salad, the students saw firsthand the challenges that schools face in serving healthy lunches on incredibly tight budgets. I applaud the students' hard work and creativity; we need more of that kind of out-of-the-box thinking in our schools. But their experience proves that dramatic changes to the school lunch program require more than creative thinking. They require more funding as well.

He continues by connecting good food with students' opportunities to learn:

I reflected on the tremendous academic opportunities the school offers to students -- opportunities that can transform their lives. But in our effort to feed every student's appetite for knowledge, we can't forget that healthy bodies and healthy minds go hand in hand.

Thanks to Sen. Durbin for raising awareness of this vital connection.

You can read the full piece here and raise your voice for healthy school food here.

Newsweek Takes on Obesity Crisis with Michelle Obama Cover Story and More

by Mark Bishop, Deputy Director

Michelle Obama made the cover of Newsweek with the first article she's written to promote the Let's Move initiative -- but the real story here is Newsweek's coverage of the obesity crisis.

In the article Culture of Corpulence, Newsweek provides an overview of the obesity crisis and in doing so becomes one of the largest mainstream advocates for reform. Take a read. It's only a few pages long, but it presents a good broad-stroke picture of the issues and of what we need to do to reverse these trends. The pieces are accompanied by several related articles, also available online. 

What was most striking to me is how Newsweek reporter Claudia Kalb presented the enormity of the challenge, emphasizing that no single person is at fault, and no single silver bullet can change the situation:

We need a coordinated comprehensive plan of attack. We need to be surrounded by food that makes us well, not sick. We need schools and workplaces to reward us for exercising our bodies, not just our brains...

An entire cultural shift is required, starting with nutrition education. Showing children the government's food pyramid is fine, but it's not enough. Kids need to learn which items to choose in the lunch line, says CSPI's Wootan, and someone needs to show them what a plate of colorful, nourishing food looks like. Schools must get the funding they need to fix ovens and buy mixers and salad bars so their meal staff can do more than reheat processed foods. Educators must figure out creative ways to incorporate exercise into the day, even if it means blasting music over the PA system for 10 minutes every morning and afternoon for all-school dance time. 

We know these changes won't happen overnight, but an important opportunity to make change for kids' health in school is quickly approaching. Right now, we're focused on reforming the Child Nutrition Act when it is reauthorized this year. (Michelle Obama also prioritized this reform as part of Let's Move.) We need to speak up to urge Congress to include increased funding for better school food in this reauthorization. You can send a letter voicing your support here.  A strong and well-funded reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act could pump more money into schools to purchase healthier options for lunch and breakfast programs.

But it has to go beyond that: we need education reform that includes an emphasis on educating the whole child so that school leaders are able to prioritize health, wellness, physical activity and nutrition just as they prioritize math and science. (And while we're at it, I have to mention that art and language are also important parts of educating the whole child.) We need to refine the ways we measure these elements in schools -- because, as they say, things that don't get measured usually don't get done.

We also need to fund facilities so we can fix up our aging schools and their kitchens, which often don't even include equipment for cooking.

And of course we need to begin looking closely at agricultural reform, so we can start investing in an agriculture system that doesn't only subsidize commodity crops but also fruits and veggies. Until that happens, it will continue to be more expensive to get a salad on your lunch tray than a cheeseburger.

So Michelle Obama has brought media attention and a sense of glamor to the issue of childhood obesity. And the reality is that behind the cover stories and news clips, there's a tremendous amount of substance to this issue -- and an incredible amount of work we can all do to help make this important and far-reaching change.

Cooking up Change Day of Action in the News!

Reporters and film makers speak with student chefs at the Capitol Hill briefing as part of the Cooking up Change Day of Action on March 2. Photos by Stacey Vaeth.

Last week, Healthy Schools Campaign organized a Cooking up Change Day of Action focused on bringing a healthy school lunch to Congress. We traveled to Washington, DC with five high school students from Chicago who presented the healthy, great-tasting school meal they created at a Capitol Hill briefing on the future of school food. Students spoke at the briefing alongside HSC founding executive director Rochelle Davis, Cooking up Change National Honorary Co-Chairs Karen Duncan (wife of Secretary of Education Arne Duncan) and Christie Vilsack (wife of Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack), and Louise Esaian, logistics officer and head of school nutrition programs for Chicago Public Schools. Their award-winning lunch of jambalaya, cornbread and cucumber salad was served the same day in the House of Representatives Longworth cafeteria.

In the week leading up to the day of action, advoates around the country spoke up for school food reform, inviting their legislators to attend the briefing, urging them to try the student-designed lunch in the cafteria, and encouraging them to vote for a strong and well-funded reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act.

We offer many, many thanks to everyone who reached out to their legislators and everyone who told their friends about the campaign. We are so grateful to the individuals who made contributions to help with the cost of bringing the meal to Congress. And we thank all of the advocates who helped spread the word on Twitter and Facebook. Today we offer special thanks as well to all the writers and reporters who helped raise awareness of the students' efforts.

Check out some of the great pieces that help tell the story of the Cooking up Change Day of Action and the need for healthy school food:

Q&A with Prominent School Food Reform Advocates
3.3.2010 | iVillage

Prize-winning student chefs tout healthy eats
3.3.2010 | Chicago Sun-Times

Cooking Up Change in School Lunch Nutrition
3.3.2010 | Fooducate 

Chicago Students Cook Lunch for Congress
3.3.2010 | The Slow Food USA Blog

Kids Feed Capitol Hill To Beef Up School Lunch Money
3.2.2010 | NPR.org

CPS students cook for Congress
3.2.2010 | ABC Chicago

Winning Students Cook on Capitol Hill—and Call for Reform
3.2.2010 | iVillage

Chicago High School's Top Chefs Cook for Congress
3.1.2010 | NBC Chicago

Cooking Up Change
3.1.2010 | Gapers Block 

Cooking Up Change
3.1.2010 | Lunchbox

We can't say thank you enough to everyone who helped spread the word about this exciting effort!

Stay posted for more photos and video of the students in DC!

Our Phone Call with Sec. Vilsack: USDA Reaches Out to Advocates, Bloggers in Promoting Child Nutrition

Last week, we had a personal phone call with USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack! Well, not completely personal. Many of our favorite bloggers and school food advocates joined in on the first blogger conference call with the USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. The purpose of the call was to announce the USDA's partnership with the National Dairy Council and the NFL to launch the new "Fuel Up to Play 60" program. (You can listen to the call here or see a transcript here.)

It's a great program. Getting the NFL involved in promoting healthy eating and physical activity is huge in terms of getting the message to kids. And of course the Dairy Council has a broad network and great resources for getting the word out about this important message. We're thrilled to help spread the word about Fuel Up to Play 60.

One of the best things about the call was that Secretary Vilsack fielded questions from bloggers. We were able to ask the Secretary about the upcoming Child Nutrition Act reauthorization and the role that high profile campaigns such as FUP60 play in changing nutrition policy.

The fact that the Secretary of Agriculture is reaching out to food and policy bloggers -- taking questions from many writers who get their messages out entirely through new media, blogging and Tweeting their ideas -- is in itself an indicator of just how much the USDA has changed under the Obama administration. (This is the same agency that recently announced a competition to design an online game for transforming 'tween eating habits. You can check out more of the USDA's new media efforts here.) It's one more example of efforts to innovate and to expand the network of people who can help spread health-promoting messages.

And Secretary Vilsack's answer to our question only supported my impression that it's a new day at the USDA.

In short, Secretary Vilsack emphasized the importance of advocacy, the need for individuals and organizations to get involved to make real change. He talked about why we need to show Congress that school food is not a niche issue that affects a subset of people but is rather a major challenge that touches on health care, farm policy, even national defense. Program such as FUP60 can help build that awareness. Showing that school food matters to NFL players and dairy farmers can only help.

While this isn't totally groundbreaking, it is interesting and very, very encouraging to hear the  head of the USDA talking openly about building networks to advocate for changing nutrition policy.

All of a sudden, the USDA is the biggest advocate for school food policy change. That's new.

Of course, this isn't to say that we can sit back and take a break. We all have a lot of work ahead of us in the coming months to continue the push to improve nutrition, health and safety standards for school food. But it does mean that we'll be doing this work with the knowledge that the USDA is listening and is interested in working with us.

Now we need to take that message to Congress.