The Whole Child Model

Series: Child Health in the Texas Legislature

The scientific verdict is in: healthy kids are better learners and more likely to succeed. Texas has been a leader in creating policies to promote student wellness yet districts still struggle to implement them. School leaders care about their students’ wellness not just because healthy students perform better at school, but because even the best student cannot achieve their full potential if they are burdened with a chronic disease. Forget the cost of college tuition--preventable Type II diabetes carries a lifetime cost of more than $85,000.

In this webinar we will explain the new “Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child” model and what innovative statewide solutions can be done do to support schools’ efforts to improve the health of their students, staff, and teachers. 

About our Speakers 

Jeremy Lyon, PhD 
Superintendent, Frisco Independent School District 

Frisco ISD is one of the fastest growing school districts in the country with 50,000 students attending in 2014. Dr. Lyon has served in public education for 28 years as a teacher, coach, principal, and superintendent. He was a fellow of the Cooperative Superintendent program at U.T.-Austin. Dr. Lyon received the Nolan Estes Leadership Ascension award in 2009 from The University of Texas Department of Education. In 2012 he was recognized by the American School Health Association as the recipient of the Superintendent’s School Health Leadership Award. Dr. Lyon is the first school superintendent in the country to serve on an affiliate board of the American Heart Association and is passionate about health and wellness issues affecting children and staff. 

Steven Kelder, PhD, MPH
Co-Director, Michael & Susan Dell Center for Healthy Living 
Professor, The University of Texas School of Public Health

Dr. Kelder has more than 20 years of experience in design and evaluation of child and adolescent research, particularly interventions directed towards youth, schools, and parents. Recently, his emphasis is on interventions designed for promotion of physical activity and healthy eating, obesity prevention, and substance use prevention.