Lori Adkins, nutrition supervisor for the West Bloomfield (Mich.) Area Schools, launched the "Walking the Talk of Wellness" program to encourage her staff to promote wellness in each school. Here, she talks about how she got her staff to commit to the program.
Lori Adkins, nutrition supervisor for the West Bloomfield (Mich.) Area Schools, shares how she was able to get her staff to commit to the district’s wellness policy.
“I began the ‘Walking the Talk of Wellness’ program this year to encourage my staff to promote wellness in the schools, cafeterias and their personal lives. A wellness policy is great, but it’s just words on paper unless you bring those words to life. I wanted my staff to get involved with the district’s wellness policy and I felt like my department needed to lead by example.
Every month, workers sign a commitment form and turn in a log at the month’s end saying what goals they’ve accomplished, both personally and in their schools. We have a participation rate of 75%, or 30 people, who turn in the monthly logs. That’s what helps people move along and you can track their progress. I have a monthly random drawing from those who turn in the logs as a reward.
The commitment creates awareness and shows them that what they do on their jobs does impact the wellness and healthiness of the students we serve.
Changing one’s behavior, even in a small way, is difficult. This program asks people to improve their wellness from wherever they are right now.”