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The Healthy Schools Partnership (HSP) believes that ongoing program evaluation is essential to ensuring the long term success of the HSP program. The purpose of the evaluation is to document the impact the HSP program has on knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of the participating school-aged children as it relates to nutrition and physical activity. The program will be evaluated over a three year period by the University of California, Berkeley Center for Weight and Health in collaboration with the University of Kansas in Kansas City and Iowa State University in Des Moines. Below is a sampling of pre-testing activities taking place in the Kansas City and Des Moines area schools.
 Kansas City |  Des Moines |
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On Friday April 23, 2010 Mrs. Christie Vilsack, wife of U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Thomas Vilsack and for former First Lady of Iowa, visited the Healthy Schools Partnership (HSP) at Hanawalt Elementary School in Des Moines. Mrs. Vilsack had the opportunity to witness HSP in action in various settings throughout the school. Stepping into a 4th grade classroom Vilsack saw students engaged in a lesson on “power beverages” taught by the RD nutrition coach; when entering the PE classroom she watched students participate in “Balance Your Beverage” a fun game aimed at reinforcing the same “power beverage” message. Vilsack also had the opportunity to sit in on a one-on-one RD nutrition coaching session before touring the school cafeteria where healthy food choices were being demonstrated by students and reinforced through the Power Pick of Champions and E=Energize posters. During Mrs. Vilsack’s visit, the Healthy Schools Partnership demonstrated how its unique energy balance curriculum supports six USDA nutrition programs. Below is a snapshot of her visit:
Vilsack Visit