A. Gasbarre, BS, K. Olsen RD, LD, SNS, L. Dehaven , MS, RD, LDN

1. Using School Intranet Resources to Relay Tips on Healthy Living: Does Having Healthy Tips on the School Intranet Site Encourage School Administrators to Relay Daily Healthy Messages to Students via Intercom System? ARAMARK Distance Learning Dietetic Internship Program, Harford County, MD A. Gasbarre, BS, K. Olsen RD, LD, SNS, L. Dehaven, MS, RD, LDN Abstract Methodology Discussion As we look to the future, we must determine the best area to focus health interventions for school-aged children.A number of studies have the students as the focus of the intervention. However, there is a lack of research on the impact of focusing these interventions on school administrators, specifically principals. It is theorized that if we expose school administrators to information for students about healthy eating and being physically active, then the information will prompt them to pass the tips along to the students. A total of 33 elementary school principals were recruited for this study. The survey was designed to determine the principals’ view on health education, and how often they use morning announcements to relay health tips. The principals were randomly divided into three groups: the control group; a group that received a single e-mail at the beginning of the intervention; and a group that received an e-mail at the beginning of each week of the intervention. Of the 33 principals, 24 completed the pre-survey, and 20 completed the post-survey. The mean and mode was determined for each question on the survey. The average response did not change drastically from pre to post-survey. The question asking how inclined the principals would be to share the healthy tips with the students, increased in response from somewhat likely to very likely to share healthy tips with the students. • Population: • 33 elementary school principals were recruited • Principals included were those that oversaw: • elementary schools • elementary and middle schools combined • elementary, middle school, and high school combined • Measuring Tool: Survey • An e-mail explaining the study with the link to the pre-survey was sent • The pre-survey will determine the baseline data used in the study • The intervention lasted 5 weeks, when healthy tips for students were available on the school’s intranet site. • An e-mail explaining the study with the link to the post survey was sent • The post-survey responses were measured against the pre-survey • The principals were randomly divided into three groups: • Group 1 did not receive an e-mail trigger (control group) • Group 2 received a single e-mail at the beginning of the intervention • Group 3 received an e-mail at the beginning of each week of the intervention • According to the results done in this study the theory, that exposing school administrators to information for students about healthy eating and being physically active will prompt them to pass the tips and facts along to the students, was not supported. Exposure to these healthy tips DID NOT increase the principals’ desire to communicate the messages to the students. • The concept of education being an important factor in behavior change was not taken into consideration when developing the intervention for the school principals. • This was a purposeful design flaw to see if mere exposure to the healthy tips prompted the principals to share them • There were two major limitations of this study • Small sample size: • Not large enough to see a dramatic difference in the pre and post-survey responses • Homogenous sample may not be an accurate representation of all principals in the US • Follow through: • Did not look at whether or not the principals relayed the healthy tips to students • Because of this lack of data, it is not accurate to assume that the intervention did not work Introduction Results Conclusion Former Surgeon General, David Satcher, once said, “School is where children spend their time; where they learn, be it from books, from example, from teachers or from their peers”1 School nutrition is a major trend in the world of dietetics The earlier good food habits are formed, the easier they will be to carry on into adulthood We must determine the best area to focus interventions, whether it is with the students, school leaders, or at home There is a lack of research on the impact of focusing school based interventions on school leaders, specifically principals It is theorized that by exposing school administrators to information for students about healthy eating and being physically active, then the information will prompt them to pass the tips and facts along to the students; if children are given the proper tools to live a healthy lifestyle then they will feel more confident in making healthy decisions for themselves. 24 completed the pre-survey, 20 completed the post-survey There was no difference in the responses between the three groups The average response (mean and mode) did not change drastically from pre to post-survey • Health education, especially at an early age, can play a key role in the health outcomes of our youth. • The standard health education classes required by schools now may not be enough • Living a healthy lifestyle through nutrition and physical activity is often not the focus • Other ways of relaying healthy messages to students need to be explored • Various forms of technology to reach students should be looked into. • The world we live in is so technologically based • This current research focused on e-mails, the intranet, and intercom systems • To reach school-aged children things like text alerts or television announcements should also be considered as tools to relay healthy messages to students Contact Information Purpose For additional information, please contact: Angela Gasbarre, BS Nutritional Sciences ARAMARK Dietetic Intern Gasbarre-Angela@aramark.com • Note question 4, how useful would you consider the information in the DFNS tab to be for your role as principal • Decline in positive responses • Still with the translation of somewhat useful • Note is question 5, asking how inclined the principals would be to share the healthy tips with the student body • Pre-survey: somewhat likely • Post-survey: very likely The purpose of this study is to see if putting healthy tips and facts on a school’s intranet site will increase the likelihood of the school administrators to relay the message to the students, via morning announcements over the intercom system.