Development of a Novel Tool for Assessing Coverage of Implementation Factors in Health Promotion Program Resources

Programs for promoting health behaviors have been developed for adoption in various settings such as schools (Hoelscher et al., 2010; Sallis et al., 1997), afterschool programs (Beets et al., 2009), child care centers (Ward et al., 2010), community health and mental health clinics (Aarons et al., 2011), and other settings (Soler et al., 2010). While many of these programs have established efficacy, implementation-related challenges often limit their impact in real-world applications (Glasgow et al., 2003; Glasgow and Emmons, 2007). As a result, an emerging body of literature has pointed to the need to better consider implementation factors related to real-world applications when developing setting-based health promotion programs (Tomoaia-Cotisel et al., 2013; Damschroder et al., 2009). Also of critical importance is to prioritize the dissemination of programs that address implementation factors, and to supplement programs that do not address such factors with appropriate and effective supports, to maximize implementation rates and quality

Perceived Reactions of Elementary School Students to Changes in School Lunches After Implementation of the United States Department of Agriculture\u27s New Meals Standards: Minimal Backlash, but Rural and Socioeconomic Disparities Exist

Background: Updated standards for meals sold through the USDA\u27s National School Lunch Program took effect at the beginning of the 2012-2013 school year. The current study assessed the perceptions of school staff regarding student reactions to these changes in school lunches and how perceptions varied across schools. Methods: Mailback surveys were gathered from administrators and food service staff at a nationally representative sample of 557 US public elementary schools in the second half of the 2012-2013 school year. Results: Half of the respondents (56.4%) agreed that students complained about the meals at first, but 70% agreed that students like the new lunches. Perceived student complaints were significantly higher among respondents from rural schools (n=184) than from urban (n=127) or suburban (n=171) schools. Respondents at rural schools also were more likely to report that they perceived that fewer students were purchasing the meals and that students were consuming less of the meals than during the previous year. Perceived student complaints were higher at schools not offering regular (i.e., higher-fat) pizza. Respondents at socioeconomically disadvantaged schools (\u3e66% of students eligible for free/reduced-priced meals) perceived that more students were buying lunch and that students were eating more of the meal than in the previous year. Conclusions: Perceptions of school personnel suggest reasonable acceptance of school lunches subsequent to revisions. Given the importance of offering healthful foods at school, the revised USDA meals standards are a promising strategy to improve the diets of children

Reach and Implementation of Physical Activity Breaks and Active Lessons in Elementary School Classrooms

The integration of physical activity into elementary school classrooms, through brief activity breaks (ABs) and lessons that incorporate movement into instruction as active lessons (ALs) are key parts of school physical activity programming and can improve children’s health and academic outcomes. With nationally-representative survey data from 640 public elementary schools in the United States, we examined the use of these practices, and the extent of implementation within classrooms. ALs were used in 71.7% of schools and ABs were used in 75.6% of schools. In multivariate models, ALs were significantly less likely to be used in majority-Latino schools (adjusted odds ratio = 0.48, 95% confidence interval [0.25, 0.93], p \u3c.05) than in predominantly White schools. ABs were significantly less likely to be used in lower socioeconomic schools (adjusted odds ratio = 0.57, 95% confidence interval [0.34, 0.95], p \u3c.05) than in higher socioeconomic schools. At schools where ABs were ever used, they were used by 45.6% of teachers, but fewer teachers used them at larger schools (ß = -.08, p \u3c.01) and at lower socioeconomic schools (ß = -.09, p \u3c.05). The reach of ALs and ABs is modest and classroom-level implementation is quite low. Additional dissemination and support is warranted to improve the reach and implementation of these strategies in elementary schools. Such efforts could improve the school-day experience in ways that benefit millions of young children

Turner Brashears at Halfway River to William Lindsey. November 21, 1806.

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/evans/1006/thumbnail.jp

Turner Brashears to William Lindsey. December __, 1806.

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/evans/1007/thumbnail.jp

An Exploration of Supports for Increasing Classroom Physical Activity within Elementary Schools

Classroom-based physical activity (CBPA) can significantly benefit students’ health and educational outcomes, but many teachers do not utilize CBPA. This study examined teachers’ perceptions about the value and impact of several approaches to support CBPA implementation, and teachers’ weekly self-reported CBPA use. Interviews were conducted with 35 classroom teachers (including those using and not using CBPA) at two public elementary schools, and CBPA tracking logs were collected on a weekly basis. Interview transcripts were interpreted through key domains within implementation science. On average, teachers reported using one activity every other day. Interview data revealed that utilizing professional collaboration time for peer-to-peer feedback and getting informal support from the school’s physical education teacher both have some promise for increasing implementation of CBPA. However, teachers largely felt these strategies were unnecessary. Explicit administrator support was reported by teachers as the most promising mechanism for increasing their CBPA implementation

The Impact of Music on the Shopping Behaviors of Generation Y Consumers in a College Campus Bookstore

The purpose of this study was to identify the effect of background music in a retail setting on Generation Y students’ shopping behaviors by using the Mehrabian-Russell environmental psychology model. the study examined the impact of genre, volume, and song familiarity on purchase intention, as well as whether these musical factors would produce a change in mood. the influence of involvement with shopping on in-store music was also examined. a total of 251 students completed pre- and post-shopping surveys at the University of North Texas’ Follett Bookstore. Participants were all between 18 and 35 years of age (Generation Y). the surveys aimed to capture the participants’ entry and exit mood as well as information such as level of shopping involvement and intentions, musical awareness, overall shopping experience, and basic demographics. a positive mood change was found between entry and exit among those who were somewhat familiar and not at all familiar with the music, and entry mood affected overall shopping experience. There was a positive correlation between exit mood and the overall experience, and a negative correlation between exit mood and the amount of money spent

Educational Environments at Housatonic Community College

Martin Ralda-Martinez's, Corey Stokes', Lindsey Toper's, and Jennifer Turner's poster discussing the physical, constructed, organizational, and aggregate evironments at Housatonic Community College

Improvements and Disparities in Types of Foods and Milk Beverages Offered in Elementary School Lunches, 2006–2007 to 2013–2014

Introduction Children consume much of their daily energy intake at school. School district policies, state laws, and national policies, such as revisions to the US Department of Agriculture’s school meals standards, may affect the types of foods and beverages offered in school lunches over time. Methods This study evaluated changes and disparities in school lunch characteristics from 2006–2007 to 2013–2014. Data were obtained from annual cross-sectional surveys at 4,630 public elementary schools participating in the National School Lunch Program. Multivariate logistic regressions were conducted to examine lunch characteristics. Results The percentage of schools regularly offering healthful items such as vegetables (other than potatoes), fresh fruit, salad bars, whole grains, and more healthful pizzas increased significantly from 2006–2007 to 2013–2014, and the percentage of schools offering less healthful items such as fried potatoes, regular pizza, and high-fat milks decreased significantly. Nevertheless, disparities were evident in 2013–2014. Schools in the West were significantly more likely to offer salad bars than were schools in the Northeast, Midwest, or South (adjusted prevalence: West, 66.3%; Northeast, 22.3%; Midwest, 20.8%; South, 18.3%). Majority-black or majority-Latino schools were significantly less likely to offer fresh fruit than were predominantly white schools (adjusted prevalence: majority black, 61.3%; majority Latino, 73.0%; predominantly white, 87.8%). Schools with low socioeconomic status were significantly less likely to offer salads regularly than were schools with middle or high socioeconomic status (adjusted prevalence: low, 38.5%; middle, 47.4%; high, 59.3%). Conclusion Much progress has been made in improving the quality of school lunches in US public elementary schools, but additional opportunities for improvement remain