The award recipients are the El Paso Independent School District (ISD), Fort Bend ISD, Fort Worth ISD, La Porte ISD and San Antonio’s Northside ISD.
SHACs are councils, appointed by the local school board, that are tasked with assisting their district in ensuring that local community values are reflected in the district's health education instruction. They recommend the number of hours of instruction to be designed to prevent obesity, cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes through the coordination of health education; physical education and physical activity; nutrition services; parental involvement; and the prevention of tobacco use.
It also provides recommendations about the appropriate curriculum and instructional methods to be used when teaching about human sexuality. Additionally, SHACs tackle strategies for integrating certain curriculum components with the following elements in a Coordinated School Health Program for the district: (A) school health services; (B) counseling and guidance services; (C) a safe and healthy school environment; and (D) school employee wellness. Texas law regarding SHACs can be found in Title 2, Chapter 28, Section 28.004 of the Texas Education Code at http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/ed.toc.htm.
Research has shown that students who are healthy and fit are more likely to do well on the state’s standardized tests, have good school attendance and are less likely to have disciplinary referrals. Each of the Awards of Excellence winners will be awarded $2,000 for the further strengthening of school health efforts.
For more information on each of the winners, visit their websites at:
El Paso ISD: http://www.episd.org/_programs/shac
Fort Bend ISD: http://www.fortbend.k12.tx.us/shac/default.cfm
Fort Worth ISD: http://itweb.fortworthisd.net/hpe/SHAC/SHAC.htm
La Porte ISD: http://sc.lpisd.org/education/components/whatsnew/default.php?sectiondetailid=4&viewType=detail&id=1732
Northside ISD: http://www.nisd.net/instruction/shac/
*The SCORE Team was assembled by The Council of State Governments to effectuate change at the state level for supporting obesity prevention. Teams from the states with the highest obesity rates were asked to participate. The Texas team includes representation from the Office of the Governor, the Texas Education Agency, the Department of State Health Services, the Texas Department of Agriculture, and the City of Arlington’s Mayoral Office. The SCORE Team developed a strategy for supporting sound policy around obesity prevention in Texas.