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Grantee Profiles
South Shasta County
South Shasta Healthy Eating Active Communities Collaborative
Collaborating grantees:
Shasta County Public Health; the South County Consortium (the Anderson Union High School District and its four K-8 feeder districts); and the Anderson Partnership for Healthy Children, (a program of Shasta County Child Abuse Prevention Council, an alliance of community partners that has been successfully conducting community health improvement projects in the Anderson area for 12 years). In addition to the grantees, the HEAC collaborative is working with: the City of Anderson's Parks and Recreation Department and City Manager's Office; Shasta Community Health Center; Happy Valley Park Committee, and Cottonwood Park Board.
Community Description
Shasta County is nestled at the far northern end of California's Great Central Valley. Although it is the last major population center in the Sacramento River Valley, it is primarily rural. Only 3 percent of land use is urban/suburban and half of the County's population resides in the City of Redding (80,865). The HEAC effort is focused in South Shasta County, which includes the City of Anderson and the unincorporated communities of Cottonwood and Happy Valley. South Shasta County has a population of 43,224 predominately white residents; however there are also sizable Hispanic (13 % of the K-12 students) and Native American (11% of the K-12 students) populations living in the area.
The five school districts that comprise the South County Consortium have a ten-year history of successful collaboration. The City of Anderson is a major supporter of the collaborative's youth development and physical activity efforts. The Anderson Partnership operates a Teen Center, which moved into a newly constructed building in March 2007. The new building is co-owned by the City of Anderson and the County to jointly house the Teen Center and a Public Health regional office.
Key Policy Goals and Strategies
- School Sector
- Develop and implement school district Wellness Policies that comply with SB12 and SB965 standards.
- Implement current California Department of Education physical education standards for grades K - 12.
- After School Sector
- Assist after school providers to create, adopt and implement policies to improve nutrition and physical activity practices in after school programs.
- Work with consortium schools and after school providers to maximize Prop 49 potential.
- Neighborhood Sector
- Identify and advocate for policies to be included in the general plan that support community livability and walkability.
- Promote development of community parks.
- Explore potential policies to provide locally grown farm produce to school food programs, limit building housing developments over farm land with, provide tax relief for farmers who do not sell to developers, promote smart growth, and expand access to trails and bike-paths.
- Health Care Sector
- Improve office clinical practice of health care providers by providing healthy eating and active living guidance for children and families.
- With targeted providers, increase the quantity and quality of assessment of children and families for the prevention and management of childhood overweight.
- Maximize appropriate billing for services relate to obesity and diabetes prevention with targeted providers.
Accomplishments:
- Early and enthusiastic implementation by Anderson Union High School District of SB12 and SB965 standards: eliminating sodas, candy and fries from campus, installing restaurant grade water stations and allocating MediCal Administrative Activities (MAA) funding to cover projected revenue shortfall during transition.
- Development by Happy Valley Elementary School District's newly established health council of exemplary wellness policies, going beyond SB12 and SB965 standards to eliminate candy-sale fundraisers, limit unhealthy foods at classroom parties and add fruit and vegetable choices to the annual Spaghetti Dinner.
- Adoption by schools of an activity-oriented curriculum, SPARK (Sports, Play & Active Recreation for Kids), with funding provided by Shasta County Public Health Department (SCPH), that provides training and equipment for classroom teachers on fun ways for students to be physically active. West Valley High School implemented a new weight training option in its PE program in which all participating students showed improvement in fitness tests.
- Established or expanded school gardens at four elementary and one middle school. Gardens have augmented school menus as well as being used in science, math and language arts activities.
- GIS-based assessment of routes and trails by 60 high school students and ten other community members, funded by SCPH. The maps will be included in the City's general plan as well as an "Anderson Walks" trail guide.
- After receiving KaBoom training, helped establish the Happy Valley Park Committee and engaged the community in designing and advocating for a local park. The committee has received a commitment for donation of more than 20 acres from a local developer.
- Through outreach and organizational efforts with local farmers in the Happy Valley community, assisted in upgrading, printing and distributing more than 5,000 Happy Valley Farm Trail maps as part of a developing "Buy Local, Buy Fresh" campaign. As a result of HEAC organizing efforts, area farmers now meet monthly to network and are working to establish a farmers' market in nearby Anderson.
- The City of Anderson's Parks and Recreation Department expanded its thrice-annual Activity guide to promote physical activity and nutrition opportunities anywhere in South Shasta County. The guides are now distributed to area medical offices along with "prescription" pads designed for provider use in encouraging patients to get active.
- Incorporated healthy snacks, daily physical activity, and a nutritious lunch program (provided by Cascade Unified School District) into the Parks and Recreation Department free "Summer Fun" program for children at three South Shasta County sites.
- More than two dozen youth participated in PhotoVoice, Project LEAN and other projects to assess school and community environments. Youth made presentations to a school board, the Parks and Recreation director, and traffic commission, successfully advocating practical changes to expand and improve nutrition and physical activity opportunities.
- Helped change clinical practice and policy at local provider offices, including: incorporation of Body Mass Index measurement and documentation in charting procedures and prohibiting candy and other unhealthy food gifts from drug company representatives.
- Shasta County Public Health has supported HEAC objectives with additional staff and funding, including nearly $100,000 in mini-grants for related equipment and improvements, staff training and other technical support.
- Shasta Health Campaign Approved
- In 2006, Shasta County approved $600,000 over three years for an advertising and public relations campaign to promote nutrition and physical activity. The Board of Supervisors voted to grant a contract to Sacramento-based Runyon Saltzman & Einhorn Inc. to run the campaign, which would include radio, newspaper and billboard ads. The attached article was published before the vote, but local sources have confirmed that it was approved.
Download: Shasta Health Campaign [7k pdf file]
To Learn More, Contact:
Shasta County Public Health
Sheryl Vietti
530-225-3745
Anderson Partnership for Healthy Children
Michele Erickson
530-378-6060
Anderson Union High School District
Charlie Kennedy
530-378-0568
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