Mount Markham Schools Find Success

Mount Markham Central School District
West Winfield, New York
Herkimer County (Central North Zone)
One hour from Albany and Syracuse

1,300 + students

 

Issue

Obesity has tripled among teenagers and doubled among children 6 – 11 years old in the last 20 years. Students are becoming more sedentary and exhibit poor eating habits. Obesity increases the risk of many chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and some cancers. Diets high in saturated fat, excess calories and sodium can contribute to the development of chronic diseases.

 

Method

The Healthy Schools Leadership Institute (HSLI) is a five-year, professional development program that focuses on building organizational capacity for healthier schools; effectively advocating for healthier schools; using assessment strategies to evaluate the school environment; leading and motivating others responsible for school health promotion; managing coordination of healthier schools; and, soliciting resources for this initiative. HSLI recruits schools to participate in the initiative. The Mount Markham Central School District is one of nineteen that the HSLI has worked with since 2005.

Jim LaFountain started attending the Healthy Schools Leadership Institute as part of the Utica City School District. In June of 2006, he became the Health, Physical Education, and Athletic Director at Mount Markham CSD and decided to continue working with the program in his new district. He enlisted the help of Deb Kosmoski, elementary educator, and most recently Courtney Russell to assist with healthier Mount Markham Schools. Jim started by developing new relationships with the Board of Education, administration, community members, teachers, and students. With Deb's help, they created representative Healthy School teams in all three buildings within the district with the first task of completing a needs assessment (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's School Health Index). Each building then completed an action plan based on the assessment and began working on their areas in need of improvement.

 

Impact

Since 2006, Mount Markham CSD:

Established a District Health Council made up of administrators, faculty, staff, students, and community members and identified the responsibilities of the Council;
Shared the School Health Index results and action plans with the Board of Education;
Implemented a staff wellness program, consisting of health screening days sponsored by Bassett Hospital, and annual wellness days in all three buildings;
Made the school fitness center accessible to staff and the entire community (after school and on weekends)
Worked with the Tobacco-Free Healthy Schools program to revise and implement a Tobacco-Free policy;
Completed the 1.5 mile fitness trail located on the high school campus;
Organized and implemented an elementary school vegetable garden with all the food harvested being used in the school cafeteria; and
Implemented a fat-free snacks program at the middle school.


Importance of Impact

Healthy school environments allow students to establish healthy habits that last a lifetime and encourage faculty and staff to be healthier, too. Mount Markham CSD recognizes this by involving students and staff in the process and providing them with the tools needed to improve their environment.

 

Keys to Success

Recruiting key people in each building and getting them involved early in the process was key in making changes. Completion of the School Health Index was the foundation that helped spur change at Mount Markham. It helped establish a baseline to work from and helped key people become involved in the process of creating change. Building relationships is also key in making any kind of change in a school district. It is those relationships that foster a since of teamwork and allow change to occur.
Future Plans

In the next five years, Mount Markham CSD plans to revisit the School Health Index to track progress and seek out future areas in need of improvement. They also plan to continue building relationships by keeping key stakeholders informed in the process, like providing regularly scheduled reports to the Board of Education. After finding much success with the elementary school vegetable garden, there are plans to expand this program to the middle and high schools. Finally, they will also work to expand instructional opportunities for students and staff in the fitness center.

 

Words of Wisdom: "The success of our Healthy Schools Leadership Initiative rests on the relationships we have built and continue to build in our school community. All stakeholders need to maintain their involvement and be prepared to continue the process as change occurs." Jim LaFountain

 

For more information about health and wellness at Mount Markham Central School District, contact:

Jim LaFountain

Health, Physical Education, and Athletic Director

Mount Markham Central School District

500 Fairground Road

West Winfield, NY 13491

Phone: 315.822.2920

E-Mail: jlafountain@mmcsd.org

 

For information about the Healthy Schools Leadership Institute, contact:

Stephanie Gray, Program Director

Healthy Schools Leadership Institute

NYS Association for Health,

Physical Education, Recreation and Dance

Phone: 518.568.5764

E-mail: sgray@nysahperd.org