EUREKA HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: One of four school to receive grant

From The News-Herald Newspapers

A statewide school grant program to help fight child obesity and encourage children to make healthy lifestyle choices has expanded into four Downriver schools, including one in Taylor.



Eureka Heights Elementary in Taylor, along with Salina Elementary in Dearborn, Dearborn Academy, and Halecreek Elementary in Romulus, were among 58 schools selected to participate in Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan’s Building Healthy Communities Program.


While many schools apply for the program, only a few are selected based on the school’s demonstrated commitment to implementing and sustaining it in future school years.



Eureka Heights Elementary School Principal Stacie Hall first decided to apply for the program after hearing many success stories from other nearby schools.



“I heard wonderful things about it and I’m always looking for different ways to bring new healthy ideas to our kids,” Hall said.


Each school selected for the program will receive an expansive support package with six core components that help promote healthy living, said Shannon Carney Oleksyk, a registered dietitian and healthy living advisor for BCBSM.



Specifically, the package includes an active recess cart filled with new supplies for outdoor use; an afterschool program where kids can have the opportunity to be more physically active and learn about nutrition; additional nutrition education in the classroom; participation and daily announcements about nutrition by the principal; implementation of a student leadership team to allow them to participate and help drive for change; and physical activity breaks in the classroom.



“We know kids need to learn about nutrition and how to eat healthy, but we also know that they need some opportunities to get those wiggles out during the day,” Oleksyk said. “So those physical activity breaks get them up, get a little bit of moving in, get a break from the academic work and then allow them to sit down and refocus.”



Each school will also have an on-site coordinator to help launch the program and make sure that it’s successful and sustainable, she said.



Scott Hummel, physical education teacher for Salina Elementary School in Dearborn, is one of many educators looking forward to the program’s benefits.



“As far as recess, the kids really don’t have anything here, so I give some of my older equipment out at recess but they’ve never really had choices or options,” Hummel said. “Part of this grant is new playground equipment; it’s going to be absolutely fantastic — the kids win in this.”



Last year, only 20 elementary schools and 8 middle schools were able to participate in the program, Oleksyk said. However, the program has expanded significantly this year due to a new partnership with the Michigan Department of Community Health, said Lynda Rossi, executive vice president at BCBSM.



“We’ve almost doubled the size of this program because of their support and their interest in it,” Rossi said.



The program is funded through a public/private partnership with BCBSM. Other partners for the elementary school program include the Michigan Fitness Foundation, the United Dairy Industry of Michigan, the Center for School Health at Wayne State University, and the University of Michigan.



“It’s kind of like a healthy schools in a box approach,” Rossi said. “All you have to do is open up the box, hand it out and watch it get implemented.”



For more information about the Building Healthy Communities Program, visit bcbsm.com/buildhealth.