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Email: ndseec.info@k12.nd.us
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Phone: 701.446.3170

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Healthy Schools Summit

2021 Healthy Schools Summit | August 4, 2021

Our purpose is to create a culture of wellness by equipping schools with innovative tools to strengthen

the connection between healthy students and improved learning!

This summit is created through a partnership between the South East Education Cooperative, PartnerSHIP 4 Health,
Schoolsalive!, and Fargo-Cass Public Health.

2019 Keynotes & Breakout Sessions:

Keynotes: Innovating Healthy Schools: Scott Meyer - Ozbun Executive Director of Entrepreneurship Innovating Healthy Schools - An entrepreneurial approach to wellness can help schools quickly develop and test programs that improve the lives of their students. In this high-energy session, Scott Meyer will share a framework on developing, testing, and implementing innovative ideas. Come with your passions, leave with a path to make it a reality Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child: Every Child Healthy!: Rob Bisceglie – Action for Healthy Kids CEO As CEO of Action for Healthy Kids for 12 years, Rob Bisceglie, has seen a shift for their organization from just focusing on childhood obesity to ensuring all kids, especially those in underserved communities are supported with: Sound and appropriate nutrition paired with physical education and activity Safe, supportive environments where they can play and grow Stable and nurturing relationships with adults You Can't Pour from an Empty Cup: Heather Simonich – Operations Director, PATH NDTeacher Self-Care Feeling tired? Less motivated? Join us for a brave conversation about managing the emotional toll of working with students and families who experience tremendous adversity. You will leave feeling less alone and more supported in your efforts to reach our most challenging students!
Breakout sessions: Family Engagement: The Often Missing Link in Whole School, Whole School, Whole Community Whole Child, Rob Bisceglie, CEO of Action for Healthy Kids Parent engagement is essential for the success of students. Join our keynote speaker, Rob Bisceglie, for a session about parents' role in health in schools and how schools must and can better engage parents. Ending Hunger, Melissa Sobolik, President of Great Plains Food Bank & Heidi Domier, Central Cass Treehouse During this session the Great Plains Food Bank will share updated food insecurity data, how hunger impacts our students and solutions to address childhood hunger. And then hear from the Central Cass Treehouse a non-profit that provides clothing, hygiene items, and food to Central Cass students in all grade levels. Every student is empowered to reach their academic goals through the alignment of support provided by the Treehouse. Vaping – What Schools Can Do to Combat the Epidemic, Jason McCoy; PartnerSHIP 4 Health Tobacco Prevention Coordinator, & Melissa Markegard; Fargo-Cass Public Health Tobacco Prevention Coordinator Vaping has reached epidemic levels in Minnesota and North Dakota. No one feels the impact more than our schools. This breakout session will provide an introduction to vaping along with a show and tell on the latest vaping items on the market. The session will provide suggestions for free curriculums to be used in school, alternatives to suspension, youth cessation and also provide a model for peer education. Trauma Sensitive Schools Panel, Trisha Mariotti, Principal Detroit Lakes Roosevelt Elementary Principal Trisha Mariotti will share their trauma informed initiative and the four strategies they've adopted to address childhood trauma in their school. She'll be joined by teachers that are implementing the strategies. Healthy Cooking the Classroom Train the Trainer Curriculum The Healthy Cooking in the Classroom Program provides hands on cooking instruction in the classroom to 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students. The program consists of four lessons taught throughout the school year and each lesson discusses MyPlate and information on good nutrition. The students prepare entire recipes from start to finish, ending with a delicious sampling that introduces them to new foods. They are taught many different food preparation skills such as: opening cans, slicing, mixing, dry and wet measuring, and heat element safety. health.moves.minds, Jenny Linker, Ph.D Associate Professor at NDSU health.moves.minds is SHAPE America’s new social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculum and fundraiser! This K-12 service-learning program helps raise funds for your school, teach basic SEL skills, and provide students opportunities to give back to their community. This session will provide an overview and basic information needed to get your school started! School Improvement: Building a Foundation for Success, Discovery Middle School This presentation will discuss the steps the largest middle school in Fargo Public Schools has taken to align their school improvement plan with the district strategic plan. Including how we involve the whole school: celebrations, struggles and integration of feedback from our recent district site visit for continuous improvement. We will discuss the activities that align to our three goal areas: academics, culture and climate. Also Multi-tiered system of supports and the data used to inform our decision-making to continue to “build a foundation for success” at our school. Stand to Protect, Tami Rust Stand to Protect Program Director It’s a sad truth that 1 in 10 children will be sexually abused, even here in our safe community. Stand to Protect teaches adults 10 action steps to help protect children from sexual abuse. This groundbreaking program was written by local professionals in Cass and Clay counties who’ve dedicated their careers to healing children. We also guide churches and organizations to strengthen their safety policies to prevent child sexual abuse. Taking School Meals to the Next Level, Area Food Service Directors Avoid menu fatigue and repeatedly serving the same mundane dishes. Hear from six area school nutrition directors about how they are adding fun and excitement to their school lunches and increasing student participation along the way! You won’t want to miss this. Breckenridge 1-2 Crew, Amy Ohm & Rachel Johnson, Breckenridge Elementary Teachers What does 21st Century Learning look like in an elementary classroom? Imagine all children having opportunities to communicate, collaborate, and exercise creativity and critical thinking through activities that connect them with their world in ways that are meaningful and relevant. Join the 1-2 Crew at Breckenridge Elementary to hear about a typical day for these active learning classrooms, and how first and second graders use sensory paths to transition, release energy, and calm down throughout their learning day.

2019 Keynote Speakers

	Scott Meyer Ozbun Executive Director of Entrepreneurship Scott D. Meyer is the Ozbun Executive Director of Entrepreneurship. In this role, he fosters connections on campus and in the community that will help develop NDSU's entrepreneurship program and support North Dakota's entrepreneurial ecosystem. In short, he helps students and faculty be entrepreneurial. Meyer has experience on both the business and academic side of the entrepreneurship spectrum. He began as a lecturer and researcher at the Arctic University of Norway, then decided to test the waters and started 9 Clouds, a digital marketing company for car dealers. After exiting 9 Clouds, he provided digital marketing strategy for political campaigns across the country in the 2018 mid-terms. Meyer has passionately pursued the best ways to help foster an innovative and entrepreneurial culture wherever he called home. He founded TEDxBrookings, Creativity Week, and 1 Million Cups in Brookings. He has been awarded the South Dakota Spirit of Entrepreneurship, Top 40 Under 40 by Prairie Business Journal, and Young Entrepreneur of the Year in South Dakota.
	Rob Bisceglie Action for Healthy Kids CEO Rob firmly believes that health is a human right and that our country does not act on that principle, which is why, as CEO of Action for Healthy Kids, he leads an incredible team that works hard to innovate and motivate schools, children, and families to make healthier choices. It’s unacceptable that an entire generation of kids may live a shorter, less fulfilling life than their parents, so our work at Action for Healthy Kids, where he's been since 2008, is vital to changing the tide. Rob wants to make the world a better place for kids, and he's held almost every job in the nonprofit sector and worked for many incredible domestic and international organizations that make a huge difference in people’s lives.
	Heather Simonich PATH ND Operations Director Heather Simonich joined PATH in May 2015, after serving 14 years with the Neuropsychiatric Research Institute in Fargo and working as the Program Coordinator and Trainer for the Treatment Collaborative for Traumatized Youth. She earned her Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. She routinely provides trauma-informed care training and consultation to child-serving organizations across North Dakota. Most recently, Heather collaborated with the ND Department of Public Instruction to create a professional development curriculum for elementary educators that is now being provided to school districts across the state. Heather has published professional manuscripts on topics related to child traumatic stress. She is a 2012 Bush Leadership Fellow and a Licensed Professional Counselor.