Healthy Schools Publications
Restorative Justice Practices Guide
Restorative justice practices in
schools refer to a range of community-based discipline and
conflict-resolution strategies, which provide accountability and
redress without removing students from the community. Traditional
suspension and expulsion measures, while sometimes appropriate,
remove students from the learning environment and too often
target students of color. Restorative justice practices
encourage facilitated dialogue and repairing harm, instead of
relying solely on punishment.
School Wellness Policy Assessment
Make it easy to be healthy at school
Our children spend a lot of time at school. Nearly every school in San Mateo County has had a wellness policy since Congress passed legislation 10 years ago requiring all school districts receiving federal funds for nutrition programs to develop a policy.
Schools have taken different approaches to their wellness policies and some have limited time and money to put these policies into practice. Federal and State mandates to improve health in schools often come with little or no funding, and despite budget cuts and an ever-shrinking staff, schools are expected to do more with less.
Check out our School Wellness Policy Assessment and Executive Summary for recommendations on how you can implement healthier changes in your school.
A Garden in Every School
The San Mateo County Food System Alliance supports having a garden in every school. Our children deserve environments and programs that directly support the development of life long health and citizenship.
Access to experiential garden-based learning leads to:
- Higher academic achievement
- Supplemental classroom lessons in core curricular areas
- Reinforcement of California’s academic standards-based concepts through real-world applications
- Addressing the crisis in children’s health and nutrition through improved eating habits
- Creating agricultural literacy and an excitement for eating fresh fruits and vegetables
- Helping children to be healthier so they can learn, grow and play
Adolescent Report
How healthy are San Mateo County's youth?
The San Mateo Health System partnered with StarVista to support the San Mateo County Youth Commission in developing and publishing the Adolescent Report: Youth and Adults Working Together for a Healthy Future, which describes the status of health and wellness for youth in San Mateo County. Using data from multiple sources, including the San Mateo Youth Commission’s Adolescent Needs Survey, the California Healthy Kids Survey, the US Census, and the California Department of Education, the Youth Commission was able to assess the health needs of San Mateo County youth and determine relevant policy solutions to address their findings.