What is the School Health Advisory Council?

Texas law (Texas Education Code, Title 2, Subtitle F, Chapter 28, Subchapter A, §28.004) requires the establishment of a SHAC for every school district. A School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) is a group appointed by the school board to serve at the District level to represent the community. Members of the SHAC represent different interests of the community and the school district, but the majority of members must be parents who are not employed by the District. SHACs are required to meet at least four times each year. Information from SHAC meetings is posted on the Hays CISD website as per TEC and policy requirements. If you are interested in reading more about SHAC, visit the Texas Department of State Health Services School Health Advisory Councils website.

What does the School Health Advisory Council do?

The purpose of the SHAC is to assist the District in ensuring that local community values are reflected in the District’s coordinated school health related policies, procedures, strategies, and curriculum. SHACs play an important role in communicating the connection between health and learning to school administrators, parents, and community stakeholders. The SHAC makes recommendations to the Board of Trustees on topics such as:

1. Health education
2. Physical activity and fitness
3. Nutrition education and obesity prevention
4. Mental health
5. Human sexuality education
6. Drug and tobacco prevention
7. Safety
8. Student and employee wellness

CATCH (Coordinated Approach To Child Health) is a TEA approved Coordinated School Health Program designed to promote physical activity, healthy food choices, and prevent tobacco use in elementary school aged children. By teaching children that eating healthy and being physically active every day can be FUN, the CATCH Program has proved that establishing healthy habits in childhood can promote behavior change that carry into adulthood.

The CATCH Program focuses on coordinating four components: the Eat Smart school nutrition program, K-5 and 6-8 Classroom curriculum,a Physical Education program, and a Family program. The Coordination of health messages between these four component areas is critical to positively impact children's knowledge and behavior. For over 10 years CATCH has guided schools, families, and children in the process of being healthy. CATCH, the largest school-based health promotion study in the U.S., has demonstrated that behaviors such as eating foods high in saturated fat and physical inactivity can be changed.