The Newsletter That Takes a Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child Approach

Friday Beat April 14, 2017 Edition

The newsletter that takes a Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child approach.

Announcements Mumps Health Advisory The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) has issued a health alert related to an outbreak of mumps. As of April 11, 2017, there were 13 identified cases in 6 states, with 2 cases being in Texas. All 13 people had traveled to South Padre Island between March 8 and March 22. In Texas, diagnosis or suspicion of mumps is required to be reported within one work day. Mumps reports should be made to your local health department or by calling (800) 705-8868. Information about mumps vaccination can be found on the DSHS website and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. You might also use this as an opportunity to introduce students to Master Mumps on the CDC BAM! website.

Awards for Excellence in Texas School Health (AFE) The AFE program is for any school district or campus that would like to begin a health project (Reaching for Excellence Award) or to sustain/expand an existing health project (Discovery or Vanguard Awards). Please refer to the new General Information documents to verify that you are applying for the appropriate award. The main difference between awards is project duration; in addition, projects submitted for a Vanguard Award must have previously received a Discovery Award.

Every Kid Healthy™ Week (EKHW)—April 24-28, 2017 Launched by Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK) to celebrate school health and wellness achievements, EKHW is a time for schools, organizations, and volunteers to take part in events that promote sound nutrition and regular physical activity. AFHK provides numerous resources to help you get started: the EKHW Toolkit and a database where you can search for EKHW events. A school may also register its own events. One that might be fun to consider is the Game On activity Host a Taste Test.

Professional Development Opportunities National School-Based Health Care Convention—June 18-21, 2017 The Convention takes place in Long Beach, California. Registration is open and early bird registration ends May 5. See the Preliminary Program for more information.

Funding Opportunities AHA Teaching Gardens & Bonnie Plants Grants The American Heart Association (AHA) Teaching Gardens program and Bonnie Plants have collaborated to support schools that are motivated to start a new garden 1 project. If you represent a school that would like to apply for funding, a Tool Kit (including a school garden manual, lesson plans, activation ideas, and resources), soil, raised bed, plants, guidance, and more, please contact [email protected]. Bonnie Plants donates vegetables and herbs.

Health Education Texas Health Education Curriculum Earlier this year, the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE) approved amendments to the health education Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for middle school and high school, adding student expectations for prescription drug awareness. Please visit the Texas Education Agency website to view the proposed amendments and to submit public comments through April 18, 2017. See proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 115, Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Health Education, Subchapter B, Middle School, and Subchapter C, High School. The SBOE is scheduled to consider these amendments for final adoption at its meeting later this month.

Alcohol Responsibility Month Ask, Listen, Learn is a multimedia program for middle school-aged students that explains how alcohol use affects the brain. This video series was developed by the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility, and Olympic athlete Simone Biles is now part of the team! Ask, Listen, Learn is stocked with free materials and available via Google Classroom. To be part of the conversation on underage drinking, join the NBC #ToolkitTalk Twitter chat at 6:00 p.m. CDT on April 18, 2017.

Physical Education & Physical Activity Importance of Aerobic Fitness This October 2016 article in The Conversation explains that aerobic fitness, as opposed to muscle strength or other types of physical fitness, is most important with regard to predicting health outcomes later in life. Aerobic fitness refers to the ability to exercise vigorously for an extended period. The author describes research comparing the aerobic fitness of over one million youth from 50 countries. U.S. children aged 9-17 ranked 47th, with 50 demonstrating the weakest aerobic fitness. Researchers found that countries having the largest gap between rich and poor citizens—wealth inequality—also had the lowest aerobic fitness levels.

Nutrition Environment & Services Innovative Menu Planning Webinar—April 19, 2017 At 1:00-2:15 p.m. CDT, the School Nutrition Association will host Best of #SNIC17 3 of 4. Chef Sharon will focus on recipes that highlight ethnic, trendy flavors, and each attendee will receive a set of her recipes for schools! Participants can earn one continuing education unit upon successful completion of the webinar and quiz.

Health Services Webinar: Immunization Requirements and Parental Concerns At 12:00 p.m. CDT on April 26, 2017, The Immunization Partnership will host Promoting Immunization Requirements & Addressing Parents’ Concerns. The webinar will cover the required immunizations for children to attend child-care and K-12 schools in Texas, as well as vaccine myths and strategies for addressing the

2 concerns of vaccine-hesitant parents. When registering, you may enter “N/A” in the Coalition Name field if you are not a member of the Immunization Coalition.

Counseling, Psychological & Social Services Autism Awareness Month In his first of two special messages about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Dr. Joshua Gordon discusses what we know about the causes of ASD. He also explains what NIMH researchers are doing to clarify how these causes lead to symptoms. His message includes findings emerging from studies of genetic factors.

Telehealth and Autism Virtual Coffee Talk—April 19, 2017 The Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs (AMCHP) is highlighting national activities and resources to raise awareness and educate the public about autism and developmental disabilities. The AMCHP’s State Public Health Autism Resource Center (SPHARC) will be hosting a series of virtual coffee talks on a variety of autism topics. Attend the Telehealth and Autism talk at 1:30-2:00 p.m. CDT!

Family Engagement Long-Term Benefits of Family Exercise This brief American Public Health Association article describes ways that families can regularly exercise together. Children age six and older should exercise at least one hour each day. However, this time can be broken into smaller segments and spent with parents! While sports activities can be extremely fun and beneficial, activities such as cleaning the house with music playing can also provide aerobic benefit. For more exercise tips, refer to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) website.

Quote to Note “Perhaps no place in any community is so totally democratic as the town library. The only entrance requirement is interest.” — Lady Bird Johnson, U.S. first lady and activist

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The articles and hyperlinks to external websites appearing in Friday Beat are intended to be informational and do not represent an endorsement by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). Other websites may not be accessible to people with disabilities. External email addresses may also be provided as a courtesy. If you choose to correspond, please be advised that DSHS policies may not apply. For information about any of the programs listed, contact the sponsoring organization directly. For comments or questions about Friday Beat, email the School Health Program at [email protected] or call (512) 776-7279.

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