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A Lesson Plan for Better NutritionCommunity Involvement“It changed the way I eat a lot now I eat vegetables with my food,or whenever I make something,I include vegetables or I includea healthier substitute.”–Elyssa, Cooking up Change winningteam member8The Chicago-based nonprofit HealthySchools Campaign (HSC) has played a keyrole in organizing community partners torevitalize school meals and physical activityprograms in the city’s public schools.With the goal of improving local policies,HSC leveraged community interest tobuild relationships with parents, schooladministrators and businesses. Today, HSCworks with more than 1,000 Chicago parentsfrom more than 50 schools in underservedcommunities on the city’s south and westsides to champion the school wellnesspolicies that are often the starting pointfor making school meals healthier.To fast track school-based changes, HSChas started working with principals onthe implementation of CPS’s wellnesspolicy recommendations for healthy foodstandards, physical activity programs andnutrition education. This year, HSC hostedbreakfasts with principals and their studentsto introduce them to the HealthierUS SchoolChallenge. HSC provides support for localschools that sign up, including model schoolprogramming and administrative help forfilling out the paperwork.10kids’ safe and healthful foods projectIn addition, HSC works with local groupsand citizens to support original approachesto bringing healthy foods to schools. Forexample, HSC coordinated a “Chef in theClassroom” day by recruiting local chefsto educate students about the importanceof healthy eating. HSC has also engagedhigh school students to raise communityawareness about preparing healthy schoolmeals on a tight budget through its annualCooking up Change contest (see CaseStudy 2), which has gained national attentionfor its positive impact.Strong Wellness PoliciesIn August 2006, as mandated by federallaw, CPS established a wellness policyon nutrition and physical activity that wasbased on the recommendations from the2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Thedistrict also formally implemented a snackvending policy that banned such machinesChicago’s LearningLab: Cooking up Change CASE STUDY 2The Healthy Schools Campaign holds theannual culinary competition Cooking upChange, in which teams of high schoolstudents create healthy menus using thesame ingredients and budget as that oftheir schools. A chef mentors each teamin the planning and preparation of healthydishes that are later judged at a fundraisingcook-off.Some of the student dishes have beenincorporated into CPS’s lunch menu, andin 2009 the winning team earned a trip toWashington, DC, to participate in a pressconference where they had the opportunityto cook with White House Chef Sam Kass.A L esson Plan for Better Nutritionin elementary and middle schools and setnutrition criteria for the snack foods offeredin high schools.In 2009, the school district convened aworking group to craft an informed visionfor updated standards that would exceedthe existing federal school meal regulationsset by USDA. Dietitians, food serviceoperators and community partners cametogether around the goal of moving schoolmeal standards closer to the 2009 expertrecommendations from the IOM, the DietaryGuidelines for Americans and HealthierUSSchool Challenge standards. The resultingmeal policies incorporate major componentsof the IOM recommendations, such asincreasing the amount and variety of fruits,vegetables and whole grains. In addition,the use of deep-fat fryers was eliminated,and menus were created that reduce sodiumand contain zero trans fats (see Table 2).Purchasing PowerSchool meal programs across the countryoperate on a tight budget. On average,they spend about 1.25 on food for eachlunch served.9 CPS knew it would haveto find creative options in purchasing thenutritious food necessary to meet its newstandards. Its sizable market power as oneof the largest school districts in the countryprovided the leverage needed for vendorsto offer favorable rates and change theirrecipes. After the district released a requestfor proposals seeking food service providersto meet its new specifications, a cost-neutralbid by Chartwells-Thompson Hospitality wonthe primary contract.Bringing in Local Produce—The districtplaced an emphasis on buying locally grownand processed fruits and vegetables, inorder to improve freshness and taste of theproduce being served in the schools whilealso supporting the local economy. Thepilot farm-to-school program that began in2007 with an initial 10,000 total investmenthas grown to a 2.3 million operation in the2010-2011 school year. The district’s primaryfood service provider works with regionalfood distributors to purchase local fruits andvegetables. Michigan apples, peaches andblueberries are some of the most popularitems with students.A key element of the farm-to-school programis the coordinators who work with farmersto ensure the food is safe, of consistentquality, and packaged and delivered in astandardized way across all of the district’sschools. This process allows school foodworkers to create the same healthy menus ineach school, regardless of the source farm.Updating Recipes and Menu Items—As part of the overall effort to create andprepare nutritious school meals, foodmanufacturers are being called upon tointegrate healthy ingredients into theirrecipes. For example, pastas, breakfastmuffins, bagels and pizza recipes haveall been adjusted to meet the district’swhole-grain standards.Maximizing the Potential of USDAFoods— CPS has focused on efforts tosecure healthier foods from the federalgovernment, which supplies schools withcommodities through a program calledUSDA Foods. Each year, CPS receives anestimated 10 million in products such asbeef, chicken and cheese from USDA Foods.Chicago Public Schools Aim for High Scores on Healthy Meals 11

A Lesson Plan for Better NutritionTable 2 Chicago Public Schools Meal Standards*Old CPS StandardsNew CPS StandardsMeets USDA standards**Exceeds USDA and HealthierUS School Challenge Gold standardsIncorporates major components of the IOM recommendationsFruit dailyVariety of fresh fruit must be offered dailyCanned fruit must be packed in natural juice or light syrupFruit juice servings are limitedVegetables dailyChoices must vary daily—fresh or frozen vegetables preferredIncreases the amount of dark green and orange vegetablesLimits starchy vegetablesOccasional whole grainsServing of whole grains every day at lunch25% whole-grain requirement at breakfastTrans fats allowedMenus are planned with zero trans fatsNo fiber requirementBreakfast: minimum of 3 grams of fiberLunch: minimum of 7 grams of fiberNo sodium standardGoal of 5% annual reduction until 2020No sodium added in meal preparationNo breakfast product restrictionsNo donuts, breakfast pastries or pop tartsNo items containing “dessert or candy type” ingredients or flavorsNo cereal standardNo more than 5 grams of sugar in the cereal unless there is also 3 ormore grams of fiberLocal produce encouragedPreference to locally grown and processed fresh or frozen fruits andvegetables when economically feasibleNo restrictions on condimentsAll salad dressing and mayonnaise must be reduced fatTreats up to 3 times per weekTreats that meet snack guidelines are allowed once a weekNachos daily in high schoolsOnce a month in elementary schoolOnce a week in high school as part of a reimbursable mealDeep-fat frying allowedDeep-fat frying prohibitedLow-fat milk encouragedNonfat and low-fat white and chocolate milk allowedWhole milk allowed when medically necessary* Printed with permission from the Chicago Public Schools** USDA federal school meal standards in effect since 1995; does not reflect USDA’s 2011 proposed changesCPS also received a 2010 Learning Labgrant from School Food FOCUS—a nationalinitiative of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation—to conduct research on the procurement ofhealthier options from both USDA and thewholesale market. Chefs in the district aretesting recipes with lower-sodium cheese,and some lower-sodium chicken options areplanned for the 2011-2012 menus.12kids’ safe and healthful foods projectIn addition, School Food FOCUS isconducting research on the possibility ofincluding antibiotic-free chicken productsin school meals. CPS’s efforts brought aboutthe lowering of sugar in flavored milk, and itis targeting breakfast cereals by encouragingmanufacturers to create versions thatmeet the district’s lower-sugar, high-fiberstandards.A L esson Plan for Better NutritionIncreasing Participation inSchool Meal ProgramsLike many school districts around the country,CPS has made it a priority to increase thenumber of students who participate in theschool breakfast and lunch programs, therebyproviding students with reliable access tohealthy food.CPS’s quest to increase breakfast participationbegan in 2007 with a universal breakfast inthe classroom pilot program, which nowserves meals to students in 200 schools at nocharge. The program expansion has resultedin more than six million additional mealsserved during the past school year, and CPSplans to offer it districtwide by June 30, 2011.Chicago’s McAuliffe Elementary School (seeCase Study 3) was the first in Chicago toimplement breakfast in the classroom. Today,70 percent of McAuliffe’s students eat ahealthy breakfast each school day.Since the original program was implemented,the method of meal delivery varies fromschool to school. Some serve breakfast intheir classrooms, but the most popular modelis what is known as “grab-and-go,” in whichstudents select their meal on the way to classin the morning.CPS has utilized inventive techniques in itseffort to bring more students into its mealprograms. For example, menus that take intoconsideration the cultural food preferencesof children are an important factor in gainingstudents’ approval of new foods. The districtalso conducts food tastings and focusgroups with students to test proposed newentrée choices for the CPS menus. Theseapproaches have proven to be important inincreasing the number of students who eatbreakfast and lunch at school, particularlyat the elementary level.CASE STUDY 3 BreakfastSuccess atMcAuliffe ElementaryNinety-seven percent of the student bodyat McAuliffe Elementary, a public school inChicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood,comes from low-income households. In2007, through the Robert Wood JohnsonFoundation’s Healthy Eating by DesignPartnership and under the leadership ofPrincipal David Pino, McAuliffe became thefirst school in the district to start a universalbreakfast in the classroom program, whichincreased the number of students who eatbreakfast at school from 200 to more than600. Providing breakfast at no charge toall students at McAuliffe ensures they haveproper nutrition for academic success.Each morning, breakfast options aredelivered to the classroom. Teachers reportthat children learn how to clean up afterthemselves and, having had a nutritious startto the day, are more attentive during theirlessons. This time is used to providemini-nutrition education and health lessons.McAuliffe’s principal points to severalpositive changes since the program started:Test scores have improved, visits to theschool nurse have declined, students aremore focused and fewer disciplinary issueshave been reported.Chicago Public Schools Aim for High Scores on Healthy Meals 13

A Lesson Plan for Better NutritionRenovating School KitchenEquipmentPreparing healthy meals requires a greaterunderstanding of the proper handling,preparation, cooking and storing of freshfood. Without the right facilities, servingsafe and healthy menu items to Chicago’s400,000 students would prove nearlyimpossible. Schools across the country aregrappling with how to integrate appropriatecooking methods for less-processed foods inschool kitchens populated with dilapidatedand outdated equipment.CPS made a significant step toward preparingand serving healthy meals by adopting a “nodeep-fat frying” policy. However, this movecreated a great need among the district’sschools for industrial kitchen equipmentwith the capacity to cook large quantities ofhealthy dishes. The transition from fryers tohealthier preparation methods has requiredcareful planning and investment. For CPS,this called for a phased-in approach forinstalling ovens and steamers to replacedeep-fat fryers.In 2009, CPS calculated it would need 7 million to improve cooking equipmentin kitchens across the district in order toprovide food service staff with the toolsto prepare healthier meals. In responseto this need, it applied for governmentgrants for which CPS received 1.5 million.These funds were used to install steamersin 65 schools, which provide capacity for14kids’ safe and healthful foods projectpreparing vegetables and grains. The grantsalso funded combination oven-steamers foruse in centralized school kitchens in whichlarge amounts of food are cooked and thenshipped out to schools around the district.CPS is now moving forward with evaluatingand updating the rest of its school kitchenequipment and serving facilities. TheHealthy Schools Campaign works with localbusinesses and civic leaders to supportthese efforts. In 2010, more than 70 saladbars opened in schools, 10 of which wereprovided by corporate partners United FreshProduce Foundation and Chiquita BrandsInternational. Salad bars have proven to bea successful way of increasing vegetableconsumption, particularly for elementaryschool students.A L esson Plan for Better NutritionMandatory Food Service TrainingTopics Sanitary Food Handling Practices Menu Compliance Culinary Training Hospitality Meal and Cash Accountability Staffing and ProductivityBecause the new CPS menus use fewerprocessed ingredients, both cooks andschool dining managers must know howto safely prepare and cook food withoutsacrificing taste. In accordance with itscontract, Chartwells-Thompson hired ateam of ten professional chefs and threeculinary trainers to conduct training sessionsand provide continuing education to workersthroughout the year. Additionally, as CPSprepared to roll out its healthier menus inAugust 2010, more than 250 cooks and100 school dining managers took part ina day-long, hands-on culinary training.Participants had the opportunity to gainnew skills, as well as to expand their palatesby trying foods such as hummus for thefirst time.Training Food Service WorkersThe switch by CPS to healthier menusrequired a personnel investment in thetraining of cooks and managers on methodsfor preparing, storing and serving morerecipe-based food items. CPS now requiresfood service vendors to use a registereddietitian in menu planning and evaluation.The vendor must provide training for its staffand daily on-site supervision. Furthermore,school dining managers must receiveprofessional development education atleast six times per year in a formal classroomsetting, with ongoing training throughoutthe year.Chicago Public Schools Aim for High Scores on Healthy Meals 15

On the Horizon“Our commitment to improving the health and wellness of our studentsis at the forefront of all administrative and operational programmaticchanges that we deliver.”–Louise Esaian, CPS logistics officerCPS and its nonprofit and corporate partnershave developed strategies for meeting highernutrition standards, while using a cost-neutralapproach. The school district has introducedmany new and healthy menu items, and overthe coming year it will continue to monitor itsbudget and any revenue changes brought onby these changes.CPS has a 70 percent participation rateoverall for the school lunch program,which is already well above the nationalaverage.10 Early results indicate that thenumber of students eating school luncheshas increased at the elementary level anddecreased in high school, resulting in anoverall participation drop of five percentover the prior school year—a trend thatis typical immediately following menuchanges. The district will also continue itsefforts to increase student participationby conducting focus groups, surveys andtaste tests to gather students’ feedback onhealthier menu items.Since CPS implemented its nutritionstandards in 2010, there has also been majorprogress in national efforts to improve schoolmeal programs. The Healthy, Hunger-Free16kids’ safe and healthful foods projectKids Act enacted in December 2010 containssignificant quality improvements to theNational School Lunch and School BreakfastPrograms. This law, which authorizes thefirst significant funding increase in morethan 30 years for school meals, requires thatnational nutrition standards for all foods andbeverages served and sold in schools areupdated, stronger food safety measures areimplemented and training opportunities forschool food service workers are increased.In January 2011, shortly after the passageof the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, USDAproposed a rule to update national nutritionstandards for school meals, bringing them inline with the 2009 expert recommendationsfrom the IOM and the Dietary Guidelinesfor Americans. CPS is positioned to fullyimplement USDA’s school meal standardsonce they are finalized, since its currentmenus already encompass most of the newrequirements. CPS’s innovative efforts towork within existing budget constraints toprovide safe and healthier meals can serveas a model of best practices for schooldistricts across the country as they strive toachieve these same goals.Endnotes U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, School Nutrition Dietary Assessment Study—III:Volume II: Student Participation and Dietary Intakes, Report No. CN-07-SNDA-III, November 2007, III-Vol2.pdf.1 U.S. General Accounting Office, School Lunch Program: Efforts Needed to Improve Nutrition and EncourageHealthy Eating, GAO-03-506, May 2003.2 U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, “HealthierUS School Challenge,” www.fns.usda.gov/tn/healthierus/index.html (accessed April 20, 2011).3 Janet M. Wojcicki and Melvin B. Heyman, “Healthier Choices and Increased Participation in a Middle SchoolLunch Program: Effects of Nutrition Policy Changes in San Francisco,” American Journal of Public Health 96,no. 9 (2006): 1542-1547.4 U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, “National School Lunch Program: Participationand Lunches Served,” data as of April 29, 2011, www.fns.usda.gov/pd/slsummar.htm (accessed May 9, 2011).5 U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, “School Breakfast Program Participation andMeals Served,” data as of April 29, 2011, www.fns.usda.gov/pd/sbsummar.htm (accessed May 9, 2011).6I nstitute of Medicine, School Meals: Building Blocks for Healthy Children (Washington, DC: NationalAcademies Press, 2009).7 Chris McNamara, “Local High Schoolers Cooking Up Change for Their Cafeterias,” Chicago Tribune onlineedition, November

to improve the quality of foods served in its schools, CPS debuted new breakfast and lunch menus in the 2010-2011 school year that exceed the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) HealthierUS School Challenge. Gold standards, distinguishing them as being among the healthiest in the country.* Moving to more nutritious meal standards