Food Services

The Superintendent of the Gary Community School Corporation supports the health and well-being of the school corporation’s students by promoting nutrition and physical activity at all grade levels.
In accordance with federal law, the Superintendent establishes the following wellness policy for the Gary Community School Corporation. The policy will provide guidelines on student access to healthy foods and beverages; provide opportunities for developmentally appropriate physical activity; and require that all meals served by the school corporation meet or exceed the federal nutritional guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The Superintendent recognizes that good nutrition and regular physical activity affect the health and well-being of the District’s students. Furthermore, research concludes that there is a positive correlation between a student’s health and well-being and his/her ability to learn. Moreover, schools can play an important role in the developmental process by which students establish their health and nutrition habits both in and out of school.
The Superintendent, however, believes this effort to support the students’ development of healthy behaviors and habits regarding eating and exercise cannot be accomplished by the schools alone. It will be necessary for not only the staff, but also parents and the public at large to be involved in a community wide effort to promote, support, and model such healthy behaviors and habits. A school health advisory council (wellness committee) will be formed and maintained to oversee these activities.
The Superintendent sets the following goals to enable students to establish good health and nutrition habits:
A. Regarding nutrition education:
Nutrition education shall be included in the sequential, comprehensive Health curriculum in accordance with the curriculum standards and benchmarks established by the State.
B. With regard to physical activity:
1. Physical Education
a. Physical education classes shall provide students with opportunities to learn, practice, and be assessed on developmentally appropriate knowledge, attitudes and skills necessary to engage in lifelong, health-enhancing physical activity.
b. Planned instruction in physical education shall teach cooperation, fair play, and responsible participation.
c. Planned instruction in physical education shall meet the needs of all students, including those who are not athletically gifted.
d. Planned instruction in physical education shall be presented in an environment free of embarrassment, humiliation, shaming, taunting, or harassment of any kind.
e. Planned instruction in physical education shall include cooperative as well as competitive games.
f. Planned instruction in physical education shall consider gender and cultural differences.
g. Planned instruction in physical education shall promote participation in physical
activity outside the regular school day.
2. Physical Activity
a. Physical activity shall not be employed as a form of discipline or punishment.
b. Physical activity and movement shall be integrated, when possible, across the
curricula and throughout the school day.
c. All students in grades K-12 shall have the opportunity to participate in extracurricular activities and intramural programs that emphasize physical activity.
C. Regarding other school-based activities:
The schools shall provide at least fifteen (15) minutes daily for students to eat.
D. Regarding staff wellness:
1. The school corporation will promote programs to increase knowledge of physical activity and healthy eating for faculty and staff. Presentations on health and wellness will be provided at least twice each school year.
2. The corporation will work with local fitness centers to offer reduced membership fees.
3. Schools will allow staff to use school facilities outside of school hours for activities such as group fitness classes, walking programs and individual use.
4. Staff will be encouraged to participate in community walking, bicycling or running events.
Furthermore, with the objectives of enhancing student health and well-being and reducing childhood obesity the following guidelines are established:
A. The District will provide and promote the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs to ensure that all students have access to healthy foods to support healthier choices and promote optimal learning.
B. The food service program shall comply with Federal and State regulations pertaining to the selection, preparation, consumption, and disposal of food and beverages, including but not limited to the U.S. Department of Agriculture USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards, as well as to fiscal management of the program.
C. The guidelines for reimbursable school meals are not less restrictive than the guidelines issued by the USDA.
D. The food service program will provide all students affordable access to the varied and nutritious foods they need to be healthy and to learn well.
E. The District shall encourage students to increase their consumption of healthful foods during the school day.
The District will provide and allow foods and beverages that support proper nutrition, promote healthy choices in vending machines, school stores, concession stands, school fundraisers and classroom celebrations. The sale of foods and beverages to students that do not meet the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards to be consumed on the school campus during the school day is prohibited. https://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/guide-smart-snacks-schools

A. All food items and beverages available for sale to students for consumption on the school campus (any area of property under the jurisdiction of the school that is accessible to students during the school day) between midnight and thirty (30) minutes after the close of the regular school day shall comply with the current USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the USDA Smart Snacks in School nutrition standards.
Including, but not limited to:
1. Competitive foods that are available to students a la carte.
2. Entrees in the dining area.
Schools may offer entrée items for sale as a la carte foods on the day they are served as part of the meal and the day after.
3. Food items and beverages from vending machines, school stores, concession stands or as fund-raisers including those operated by student clubs and organizations, parent groups, or booster clubs.
a. The sale of food items that meet the Smart Snack definition are not limited in any way under the standards but cannot be sold during or compete with school mealtimes. GCSC strongly encourages the use of non-food items to raise funds.
b. The standards do not apply during non-school hours, on weekends and at off campus fundraising events.
c. Two (2) exempt fundraisers per school per year will be permitted with principal approval. Each day equals one fundraiser.

B. The food service program will strive to be financially self-supporting; however, if it is necessary to subsidize the operation, it will not be through the sale of foods with minimal nutritious value.
C. All foods available to students in District programs, other than the food service program, shall be served with consideration for promoting student health and well-being.
D. The food service program shall be administered by a director who is properly qualified, certificated, licensed, or credentialed, according to current professional standards.
E. All food service personnel shall receive pre-service training in food service operations and additional continuing professional development.

The Superintendent designates the Chief Financial Officer as the individual charged with operational responsibility for verifying that the District meets the goals established in this policy.

The Chief Financial Officer shall appoint a District wellness committee that includes parents, students, representatives of the school food authority, educational staff (including physical education teachers), school health professionals, members of the public and school administrators to oversee development, implementation, evaluation and periodic update of the wellness policy. The Wellness Committee shall be an ad hoc committee with members recruited and chosen annually.
The Wellness Committee shall be responsible for:
A. Assessment of the current school environment;
B. Review of the District’s wellness policy;
C. Presentation of the wellness policy to the Emergency Manager for approval
D. Measurement of the implementation of the policy;
E. Recommendation for the revision of the policy, as necessary.

Before the end of each school year the Wellness Committee shall recommend to the Chief Financial Officer any revisions to the policy it deems necessary.
The Chief Financial Officer shall report annually to the Superintendent on the progress of the Wellness Committee and on its evaluation of the policy implementation and areas for improvement, including status of compliance by individual schools and progress made in attaining goals of policy.
The Chief Financial Officer is also responsible for informing the public, including parents, students and community members, on the content and implementation of this policy.
In order to inform the public, the Chief Financial Officer shall distribute information at the beginning of the school year to families of school children and post the policy on the District’s website, including the Wellness Committee’s assessment of the implementation of the policy.
The School Wellness Policy shall be made available to students and families by means of school registration, the student handbook and the corporation’s website.
Through implementation and enforcement of this policy, the corporation will create an environment that supports opportunities for physical activity and healthy eating behaviors.

I.C. 20-26-9-18
42 U.S.C. 1751, Sec. 204
42 U.S.C. 1771
7 C.F.R. Parts 210 and 220
Rev. (8/30/2024)