Initiatives

Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds Institute 2023

The 2023 Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds Institute, scheduled for August 1, will focus on Building Relationships for Healthy, Equitable and Engaging Experiences for the School Community. This year’s event will be hybrid, providing both an in-person and virtual experience. The site for the in-person event is Montgomery County Community College, Pottstown Campus.  The conference is free to attend and professional development credit for PA educators will be provided.   More information is available at www.bit.ly/HBHM2023

Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds Institute is an annual conference designed to nurture the interdisciplinary roles of educators, administrators, researchers, and community partners in fostering school environments that promote wellness as a core component of school culture, student achievement, and student, staff, and community well-being.

Conference Information

A live keynote and both live and pre-recorded sessions are planned for the event.  Sessions will inform the follow areas:

  • Community Connections - School and community partnerships are essential for helping students achieve at their maximum potential.  Presentations will demonstrate how schools offer a platform for partnerships with other public agencies and organizations to engage students, staff, and families in meaningful and culturally appropriate ways to actively support youth development and learning.  
  • Equity Approaching school wellness with an equity lens means that providing an education while also addressing the health needs of all students ensures equitable access to resources and rigor,  supports for  healthy  learning environments for students and staff, and ensures the school community is supported in a way that honors everyone's unique identities and needs while promoting diversity of thought and encouraging collaboration.
  • Trauma Informed Practices A trauma-informed school system (K-12) is one in which all teachers, school administrators, staff, students, families, and community members recognize and respond to the behavioral, emotional, relational, and academic impact of traumatic stress on those within the school system. Attendees should expect to learn best practices that build the capacity of educators, parents, and community practitioners to implement and sustain system-wide, trauma-informed support for all students.  
  • Nutrition and Physical Activity  - Eating a nutritious, balanced diet and being physically active are two of the most important things one can do to be and stay healthy at any age.   Presentations in this track will address food access and security for students, integrate practices to nurture and integrate physical activity into learning strategies and provide knowledge and best practices for healthy living, healthy eating, and the promotion of evidence-based practices to integrate nutrition and physical activity as core components of a healthy lifestyle for students and school staff.
  • School Wellness Checklist © Implementation - The School Wellness Checklist© is a research-based tool utilized by schools across the country as a guide to self-select and implement effective wellness activities and strategies each school  year.  Presentations will demonstrate how school leadership, communities partners, and other actors across the school community leverage recommended policies, programs, and activities across the seven core components of the Checklist (Wellness infrastructure, Nutrition,  Physical Activity, Social-Emotional Wellness, Wellness Culture, Staff Wellness, Sustainability ) to ultimately impact student health and academic performance.

 

All presenters for the event must be pre-approved by the HBHMI 23 Committee. Session facilitators are encouraged to communicate their interest by submitting our Presenter Interest Form

If you need any technical assistance with presentations, recordings, etc.. Please contact Dr. Josh Hoyt at jhoyt1303@gmail.com or 610-704-8658.

Meet the Sponsor

HBHMI is sponsored by the Pottstown Area Health & Wellness Foundation. The Foundation’s purpose is to help residents improve their health and well-being every day. One of the primary ways we aim to achieve our purpose and, ultimately, our mission is to partner with organizations in our service area by providing funding of solutions aimed at long-term improvement in healthy behaviors.  One of our grant-making program areas aims to integrate best practices that promote wellness as a core component of school culture and student achievement. More about the Foundation’s strategy for funding long-term impact within a culture of transparency, equity, and learning can be found here.

Since 2004, more than $12 million has been awarded to the public and private schools within the Foundation’s service area. In short, the Foundation’s role is to help area residents improve their health and well-being every day.  By doing so, we are creating a more dynamic and more vibrant community in which to live now... and into the future.

Contact Us

Please direct any communications here, and a member of the event team will respond accordingly.