School Health Advisory Council (SHAC)
by Jenifer Hernandez
January 05, 2009
Next SHAC Meeting is scheduled for Monday, May 3rd at 6:45pm in the Board Room
Agenda: 5k and upcoming year
Minutes from meeting on 10-01-2009:
Flu preparedness and prevention (hand sanitizers around campus, attendance, return policy, resources)
Upcoming events (mobile dentist, asthma ed., pedometer activity, fitness gram)
Health Fair (discussion on where and when, who to invite, incentives for families in the community to come and advertisements)
Minutes from meeting on 11-05-2009:
Health Fair Preparation, what booths were confirmed, activities confirmed, donations given, and volunteers confirmed.
Last minute details(who, when, where)
Minutes from meeting on 11-19-2009:
Last minute details for health fair(who, when, where)
Minutes from meeting on 03-01-2010
Our Fitness-gram stats in comparison to others, showed correlations between student TAKS scores and BMI's.
discussed keeping the 1/2 credit of health
discussion about CATCH curriculum implementation and incorporation into the CIP's
reviewed bake sale standards
discussion about how to improve our school meals
creation of school garden
SHAC Members
Johnnie Thornton – High School Principal
Jenifer Hernandez – Health Coordinator, RN
Amy Vargas – Nutrition Director
Linda Huebner – Family/Consumer Science Instructor
Natalie Enderlin – Physical Education Instructor
Jaime Rollie – parent
Sylvia Luna – parent
Trish Lopez – parent
Stacy Reyna – parent
Staci Sill – parent
Susan Outlaw – parent
Bebe Johnson – parent
Lori Klaus – parent
JD Vargas – student
Kendra - student
Vision Statement
All GISD students will reach their full personal, health, and academic potential.
Mission Statement
The mission of the GISD SHAC is to ensure that all children in the GISD, grades PreK-12, will have healthy bodies and minds through sequential health education, practices, and modeling of good health behaviors.
Goal
The goal of the GISD SHAC is to advise GISD decision-makers regarding students’ needs and assets related to health knowledge and skills, regarding policies and procedures that impact student health, and regarding the health of the school environment. See TAC Education Code 28.004(a) for specific objectives and duties assigned.
Bylaws
Article I: Authority
Section One: Statute.
Each school district in the State is required in Chapter 28, Subchapter A-K, and Chapter 38.013 of the Texas Education Code, to establish and maintain a district-level school health advisory council.
Section Two: Limitation
The SHAC shall be an advisory body, and shall serve to provide guidance, recommendations, and other assistance to the Board of Trustees as is specifically listed in state law and District policy.
Section Three: Bylaws
It shall be the responsibility of the Board of Trustees, upon the advice and counsel of the SHAC, to establish and amend the Bylaws.
Article II: Responsibilities
According to state law, District policy, and the direction of the Board of Trustees, the SHAC shall have the following responsibilities:
A. To hold regular meetings.
B. To meet periodically with the Board of Trustees.
C. To provide advice and recommendations/counsel prior to decisions pertaining to the areas of health education curriculum appropriate for specific grade levels that may include a coordinated school health program designed to prevent obesity, cardiovascular disease, and Type II diabetes through coordination of: health education, physical education, nutritional services, parental involvement, staff wellness, environmental health, mental/emotional wellness, and health services.
D. To consult regularly with the superintendent and his/her administration regarding the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the district coordinated school health program.
E. To approve the district coordinated school health program, subject to adoption by the Board of Trustees.
F. To consult with the Superintendent and his/her administration in advance of submitting issues, concerns, reports, and recommendations to the Board of Trustees.
G. To advise and consult with the district in the development of a comprehensive health education curriculum.
H. To provide a written annual report to the Board of Trustees on or before June 30 of each year.
Article III: Meetings
Section One: Regular Meetings
The SHAC shall conduct a minimum of four regular meetings per year. If a meeting is cancelled, all attempts will be made to reschedule for another day during the month; however, if the meeting is not rescheduled, there will not be a make-up meeting scheduled. The regular meeting in September shall be considered the first meeting for the year.
Section Two: Public Hearings
Public hearings and other meetings with the public should be approved by the Board of Trustees in advance of such meetings. This will be coordinated through the SHAC Coordinator.
Section Three: Open Meetings
All meetings of the full SHAC shall be open to the public, and the public shall have reasonable opportunity to provide comment. The Chair may limit the time given to speakers. Committee meetings may be open to the public at the discretion of the Committee Chair.
Section Four: Quorum
A quorum shall be the majority of the current membership, as approved by the Board of Trustees. Meetings may still be held without a quorum for purposes of presentations or discussion. However, no actions or voting may take place without a quorum.
Section Five: Attendance
Member attendance shall be monitored by the Chairs, who shall work with members to try and resolve any attendance problems. Non-attendance for three consecutive meetings within a one-year period may result in removal. Members are encouraged to contact the Chair or the Coordinator if they know they cannot attend a meeting.
Section Six: Decision-making
Members shall attempt to reach decisions by consensus. However, if a clear consensus cannot be obtained, members shall reach a decision by majority vote. Each member shall be entitled to one vote per item. Proxy voting and absentee ballots shall not be permitted; a member must be present to vote.
Section Seven: Agendas
Agendas shall be provided for all full SHAC meetings. Agenda items shall be determined by the Chair in consultation with the Executive Committee and Coordinator.
Article IV: Membership
Section One: Membership Criteria
The membership composition of the SHAC shall comply with the following:
A. Parents must live within the district, and must be a custodial parent or guardian of a student currently enrolled in a district school.
B. The majority of the SHAC will consist of parents of students currently enrolled in the District, who are not employed by GISD.
C. The Board of Trustees may also appoint one or more persons from each of the following groups: teachers, administrators, district students, health care professionals, business community, law enforcement, senior citizens clergy, and nonprofit health organizations.
D. A minimum of two high school students from GISD shall serve on the committee.
E. Membership of the SHAC shall strive to reflect the geographic, ethnic, gender and economic diversity of the District.
F. The Superintendent or designee shall serve in an ex-officio (non-voting) capacity.
Section Two: Terms of Service
The term of service for an appointment shall be two years, normally beginning the first SHAC meeting in September. Terms will be staggered to maintain continuity on the SHAC. Parents and community members will serve a two-year appointment. Campus level staff and students shall serve a one-year term. Members may serve multiple terms.
Section Three: Confirmation by Board of Trustees
The Board of Trustees shall annually appoint all members to the SHAC.
Section Four: Vacancies
The Board of Trustees delegates to the SHAC Executive Committee, pursuant to Article IV, Section Three of these Bylaws, the responsibility to fill any vacancies that may occur after the Board has annually appointed the SHAC membership.
Section Five: Conflict of Interest
No individual shall be nominated for or hold a position on the SHAC if that individual has a direct pecuniary interest in the recommendations of that committee and decisions by the Board of Trustees. Even the appearance of a conflict of interest should be avoided if at all possible. A lone agenda item shall not be cause for the elimination of an individual’s membership; however, any such individual shall refrain from participation in decisions and voting as to that issue.
Section Six: The Role of the Superintendent
The Superintendent and SHAC will work cooperatively. The Superintendent will ensure staff support as is necessary and reasonable and will participate without vote in the deliberations and activities of the SHAC.
Section Seven: Size of Council
The SHAC will consist of no more than 24 members and no less than 10 members.
Article V: Officers
Section One: Terms of Service
The SHAC shall elect a Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary, each to serve two-year terms. Officers may not serve more than two consecutive terms. Officers will be selected in May or June and installed at the first September meeting of the SHAC.
Section Two: Responsibilities
A. The responsibilities of the Chair shall be to:
- Preside at all meetings of the SHAC.
- Appoint committees as necessary.
- Serve as ex officio member of all Committees-without vote except the Nominating committee.
- Work directly with the Executive Committee and the Coordinator to compile agendas for all meetings of the SHAC.
- Perform other responsibilities as may be prescribed by the SHAC, which are in accordance with SHAC’s authorizing statute, direct policy, and direction of the Board.
B. The responsibilities of the Vice – Chair shall be to:
- Preside at SHAC meetings in the absence of the Chair.
- Serve as ex officio member of all committees without vote except the Nominating committee.
- Serve as Chair-elect.
- Perform other responsibilities as may be prescribed by the SHAC, which are in accordance with SHAC authorizing statute, District policy, and direction of the Board.
C. The responsibilities of the Secretary shall be to:
- Preside at meetings when both the Chair and Vice-Chair are absent.
- Work with the Coordinator to prepare meeting notices, minutes, and arrange the location of the SHAC meetings.
- Perform other responsibilities as may be prescribed by the SHAC, which are in accordance with SHAC’s authorizing statute, District policy, and direction of the Board.
Article VI: Coordinator
The Facilitator of Health Education or the Director of Health Services shall serve as the Coordinator for the SHAC. Responsibilities of the Coordinator shall include:
A. Ensuring that adequate facilities arrangements and staff support are secured for all meetings.
B. Providing members and support staff with agendas and background materials prior to meetings.
C. Serving as custodian of all SHAC records.
D. Promoting public awareness of the SHAC and maintaining a database of persons interested in service as SHAC members.
E. Informing the Chair of member vacancies and attendance problems.
F. Provide staff support in the development and submission of SHAC’s annual report.
G. Informing the Chair and General Counsel of possible member conflicts of interest.
H. Providing such other assistance as requested in accordance with the SHAC authorizing statute, district policy, and the direction of the Board of Trustees.
Fit, Healthy and Ready to Learn
Research shows that healthy children do better in school - from attendance and behavior to academics and overall performance. The Granger School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) works with the district to help support good health and academic achievement.
What is a SHAC?
A SHAC(School Health Advisory Council) is a district appointed advisory group of individuals who represent different segments of the community. By law, a majority of the members must be persons who are parents of students enrolled in the district and who are not employed by the district. The GISD SHAC is made up of parents, students, and school staff working together to improve the health of all students and families through coordinated school health programs.
For more information on SHAC see the following
Coordinated school health program:
