Jumping wellness hurdles: How one school district is overcoming obstacles to student wellness

As part of a federal mandate for schools participating in the National School Lunch Program, Atlanta Public Schools developed and implemented Local School Wellness Plans in all schools (N = 85) during the 2006-2007 school year. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provided funding to evaluate the development and implementation of the plans. One method used to gather in-depth data was key informant interviews with Local School Wellness Council members. Many interview questions focused on the challenges schools faced when both creating and implementing wellness activities. The most frequently reported limiting factor in developing the wellness plan was time. Wellness Councils attempted to overcome time limitations by incorporating physical activity into the classrooms and integrating wellness-related lessons into the curriculum. Additionally, money and a lack of human resources were reported as limiting factors in development. Informants overcame funding and personnel barriers by applying for grants and seeking support from community partners and PTAs. For wellness plan implementation, the most commonly cited constraints were also time and funding, but an additional barrier noted by participants was the cafeteria food offered by the contracted food service provider. The interviews indicate the need for funding and the inclusion of wellness in the classroom, which would minimize additional time and staffing needs for wellness activities. Support from school fundraisers, community donations, and grant opportunities are vital to implementation of school wellness plans along with guidance for incorporating wellness lessons into the curriculum.