Wellness in Schools

Students at Procter R. Hug High School are not participating in the Free and Reduced Lunch Program. Changes in policy throughout the school district altered some of the food choices served on campus.

Vending machines are no longer in service, outside snacks are banned, and the regulation of in-class “parties” prohibits most outside food from entering the campus.

The food served on campus must range within certain guidelines established by the new policy. The new options are not too popular.

Large amounts of waste from the lunch period are scattered across the floor of the cafeteria. Huge portions of uneaten food fill the trashcans outside of the cafeteria everyday.

“It just doesn’t taste good. They try to make the food seem more nutritious but no one wants to eat it,” said Evcey Coronado, a senior at Hug High School.

Coronado attended Hug for four years. He experienced the district’s attempts to improve the program.

He explained that the Washoe County School district is enforcing this new policy about student health on all campuses.

“I’m not even allowed to bring my own food. They shut down the student store because they think the food is too unhealthy,” said Coronado.

According to a document from The Nevada Department of Agriculture, The Wellness Policy is meant to establish nutrition standards for the foods the students consume during a regular school day.

The content the document explains that the policy is not meant to limit the food offered on campus but it is meant to offer healthy options instead.

The Nevada Department of Agriculture enforces the Wellness Policy on the Washoe County School District. The Wellness Policy was established in Sept. 2015.

The Wellness Program is mandated at all schools in Washoe County. Hug High School is one of the few schools in the district that participates in the Free and Reduced Lunch Program.

Most students rely on the services from the Free and Reduced Lunch Program, despite the changes in the policy.

Kathleen Garcia, a registered nurse experienced with nutrition, says that there are different measures the students can be taking to promote health on campus.

“Banning certain foods and snacks from school grounds and removing vending machines is only putting a Band-Aid on the childhood obesity epidemic. The government, along with schools, have to think about a long term solution. I feel that nutritional education starts in the homes. Most children are a product of their environment so if the parents have poor eating habits, their kids will too,” said Garcia.

There are many individuals in the community, like Garcia, who have the same opinion on the Wellness Policy.

The conflict between nutrition, the government, and the students’ preferences, is a battle that continues in Washoe County.