The School Administrator

October 2005 Number 9, Vol. 62Obesity's Weighty BurdenWhat responsibility do educators bear for student health?

Features

Another Weighty Burden
by Scott LaFee
How much responsibility should public schools shoulder for dealing with one of the leading health concerns of the day--the worsening obesity of America’s school-age population? School leaders and health officials weigh in and generally land on the same side of the line.
Similar Reading: Denver’s Balancing Act for Obesity and Vending and AASA Assists on Wellness Policies and A Pediatrician’s Prescription to Stem Childhood Obesity and Pursuing Answers to Obesity
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Mending Vending
by Ruth Sternberg
It’s one tough tradeoff. Do school leaders promote all the practices of good nutrition to ensure the healthiest student bodies? Or do they continue to make available popular snacks and beverages in their school vending machines, which generate substantial profits that support essential school and student needs that aren’t funded by other sources?
Similar Reading: Stamping Out Soda in St. Joe’s
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Life Before Tests
by Patrick Cooper
The superintendent in McComb, Miss., a former project director with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, details his school district’s coordinated approach to meeting a full range of student needs. Those needs are substantial in a 3,000-student district where 80 percent qualify for the federal lunch program.
Similar Reading: Indoor Air and Student Health and AASA’s Rx for Asthma Relief
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Profile

A Capstone on Her Career by Jay P. Goldman

Joan Raymond delays retirement to add a coda in South Bend, Ind., to an already accomplished career.read more

Departments

Focus

Building a Learning Community of Senior Staff by Denise K. Schnitzer

In Norfolk, Va., a leadership team meets regularly to engage in self-development activities.read more

The Legal Toll of Candor in Personnel Recommendations by Nathan L. Essex

Should school leaders provide candid responses to questions about staff members who are job candidates elsewhere?read more

School-Home Communication in Multiple Languages by Verdi N. Avila

Cobb County, Ga., developed a service to communicate with non-English-speaking parents.

Guest Columns

The Surprise Architects of an Intrusive Federal Role by Michael D. Usdan

The profound ideological shift toward federal control of teaching and learning at the local level.read more

The Need for a Stone Soup Budget by Bruce E. Storm

A superintendent pursues a recipe that will sustain students with fewer ingredients.read more

Punchback: Answering Critics

Charter Schools Are No Magic Solution by Richard Rothstein

Despite what partisans claim, average charter school performance is no better than that of regular public schools serving similar students.read more

Board-Savvy Superintendent

Teach the Board Its Proper Role by Nicholas D. Caruso Jr.

Sometimes it requires extra effort by the superintendent to bring out the best in the school board.read more

President's Corner

Measuring Your Force by David E. Gee

Recalling a favorite pop song, AASA’s president asks readers to become the supportive wind beneath someone’s wings.read more

Executive Perspective

Water and Ice by Paul D. Houston

Close-up observations of AASA’s executive director on Drake’s Passage and Iceberg Alley and what he learned about the world school leaders inhabit.read more

Federal Dateline

Tell Them What’s on Your Mind by Nicholas J. Penning

The merits of free membership in the AASA Legislative Corps.read more

People

People

AASA members’ career moves. Sidelight shines on a superintendent who’s also a ventriloquist.read more

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