Howell High School Honored by

Michigan Surgeon General

A Healthy School Environment promoted at Howell High School/Howell Aquatic Center Howell High School stepped up to the plate to create a healthier school environment and students are all on the winning team. On April 23rd Howell High School was one of 103 schools honored by Michigan Surgeon General Kimberlydawn Wisdom and the Michigan Action for Healthy Kids Coalition as a 2008 First Place School of Outstanding Achievement in the Michigan Healthy School Environment Recognition Program.

"We are tremendously excited that our educators and their community partners are taking the lead in improving the health of our most treasured resources--our children," said Wisdom. "A healthy school environment gives students clear and consistent health messages and ample opportunity to practice what they've learned. Research shows healthy students do better academically, have better attendance, and have fewer behavior problems."

To apply for the recognition program, schools provide information about nutrition, physical education/physical activity, and tobacco-free practices and submit at least one success story. At Howell High School, the accomplishments that helped make our school a healthier place for students and staff include a Healthy Snack Machine, and removing all soda from vending machines.

"The 103 schools recognized this year represent almost 54,000 students impacted by the positive changes," said Kandi Lannen, a registered dietitian and co-chair of Michigan Action for Healthy Kids. "This is the third year of the program and the number of schools being recognized has increased threefold since its inception," added Shannon Carney Oleksyk of the Michigan Department of Community Health.

HealthPlus of Michigan provided professional development scholarships so staff from Howell Public Schools could attend the Eat Healthy + Play Hard = Smart Students conference on April 22-23 in northern Michigan. "HealthPlus is proud to support the efforts of our schools to improve the health of Howell Public Schools 517-548-6281
www.howellschools.com children," said HealthPlus Health & Lifestyle Management Director Randy Jones. "HealthPlus' vision is a healthier community and those efforts can help make that vision a reality."

To view all school success stories and learn more about the Healthy School Environment Recognition Program and other resources available for schools, please visit the Michigan Department of Community Health-sponsor site www.mihealthtools.org/healthyschools.asp.

For more information about the Surgeon General's health and fitness initiative visit, www.michiganstepsup.org. To join Michigan Action for Healthy Kids see www.actionforhealthykids.org. Michigan Action for Healthy Kids is a grassroots coalition working to improve the food and beverages offered in schools and increase the amount of quality daily physical education and physical activity offered to students.

For more information, please contact Saralee Bloese, Aquatics Director/Wellness Coordinator, 517-548-6355 or email: bloeses@howellschools.com,

Howell Public Schools, Howell Area Aquatic Center

1224 W. Grand River, Howell, MI 48843