Nutrition Policies: School Leadership Makes a Difference

Introduction:
Obesity continues to be a public health concern in children and adolescents. In an effort to redirect focus on the valuable role of schools when addressing obesity, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 was developed to strengthen school wellness policies. While the law mandates policy content and the development of a School Wellness Team, schools yield varying success in the implementation of these policies. Leadership at the school-level is needed to provide oversight and linkages. The purpose of this research aims to explore how the leadership profile of school leaders from twelve New Haven Public Schools influences nutrition policy implementation and school climate.
 
Methods:
Data collection is underway since 2009 in New Haven Public Schools and will conclude by the close of the 2014-2015 school year. This study will utilize a mixed methods approach with a sample of semi-structured interviews and leadership surveys – self report of school principals (n=12), leadership surveys from observers (n=60), a Wellness School Assessment Tool (WellSAT-i) of each school (n=12), student self-reported surveys of nutrition policy implementation (n=623) and student self-reported school climate surveys (n=623).

Results:
Themes from interviews, leadership profiles of school leaders, school climate results and implementation scores will be presented. 
 
Discussion:

Results will illustrate key leadership profiles in an urban school that may influence effective implementation of policies. This research may provide useful information to support school leadership training programs. It may also better define relationships between school leaders and their influence in promoting nutritional, health, behavioral, and academic outcomes.