Get Healthy Utah News and Blog

Organization: Get Healthy Utah

Contact: Alysia Ducuara, Executive Director

Location: 2180 S 1300 E, Suite 440, Salt Lake City, UT 84106

Program Details:

The mission of Get Healthy Utah is to create a culture of health through engaging multi-sector stakeholders, building partnerships, providing resources, and connecting efforts that support healthy eating and active living.  

We do this by:

• Engaging high level leaders
• Partnering with public and private entities
• Addressing health equity
• Collecting, developing, and sharing best practices
• Promoting systems-level change
• Providing funds and other resources

Internship Activities:

• Aid in the day-to-day work of Get Healthy Utah
• Develop and distribute promotional materials
• Assess community needs 
• Develop partnerships 
• Help conduct evaluation of projects
• Develop and post social media content
• Attend coalition and other meetings as needed
• Perform all other duties assigned by the supervisor

Prerequisites:

• Education and/or experience in health education, health promotion, or public health (students and graduates are welcome to apply)
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Self-motivated and hard-working
• Computer skills: Social media, design, spreadsheets, presentations, and word processing programs
• Applicant must have access to their own laptop and reliable transportation

Details:

• Starting Date: Monday, August 29th, 2022
• Number of hours: Approximately 250 total (10 hours/week)
• Pay rate: $2,500 stipend
• Hybrid in-office and remote. Must be able to commit to at least 10 hours/week with at least one day per week in the office during regular office hours

To Apply:

Send a cover letter and resume to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by Friday, August 19th, 2022.

In June 2022, Get Healthy Utah offered mini-grants to cities and towns that want to provide their citizens with better opportunities for healthy living. Cities and towns could apply for up to $5,000 to fund a health-improving project in their community. Projects could be specific and unique, or they could align with one of the evidence-based health strategies associated with the Healthy Utah Community designation. Cities and towns that had already earned the Healthy Utah Community designation were prioritized for funding, and other communities that applied were encouraged to pursue projects that would allow them to qualify.

Seventeen communities applied, and Get Healthy Utah was pleased to provide funding to the following twelve applicants: 

• Deweyville
• Goshen
• Indigenous International - Utah County and Ute Ouray Nation areas
• Kearns
• Kanab
• Millville
• Monticello
• Magna
• Ogden
• Washington City
• Woods Cross
• Vineyard

Funding will go towards projects that increase opportunities for physical activity and healthy eating. Examples include expanding local trails, providing physical fitness programs, and establishing community gardens.

As communities across the state are stepping up to provide their citizens with opportunities for healthy living, Get Healthy Utah is thrilled to support their efforts!

The Utah State Board of Education has provided Best Practice for Recess Guidelines. While not mandated, the guidelines support the Utah State Board of Education’s Strategic Plan Safe and Healthy Schools Goal that every student can learn in a safe and healthy school environment.

Why Recess Matters

Physical Activity and Obesity

The CDC recommends that children get at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day. However, in Utah, only 14% of children meet this recommendation. Lack of physical activity can contribute to an unhealthy weight and lead to further health problems. Recess can provide an opportunity for physical activity at school, where students spend a large part of their day. Recess provides the opportunity to take a break from focused classroom work and allows students come back refreshed and ready to learn.

Physical Activity and Academic Achievement

Recess helps get blood moving and improves brain function. Research shows that after 20 minutes of physical activity, students  test better in reading, spelling, and math. Recess helps children focus better and reduces classroom misbehavior.

Physical Activity and Social/Emotional Health

Recess allows children to develop fundamental, lifelong personal skills to help them better thrive in and out of the classroom. Students are better able to problem solve, negotiate, and develop communication skills.

Recess Guidelines

In Utah, 65% of all schools withhold recess for punishment or remediation.  However, among Title 1 schools, that number increases to 72%. The Best Practices for Recess Guidelines can help schools ensure that all their students have an opportunity to participate in recess, which can help them better succeed in school. The guidelines provide a model policy, alternatives to withholding, strategies for indoor recess, and other best practices to ensure that recess can be successful.

Recess Model Policy

Learn more about how you can implement Recess before Lunch.

Do you have a recess success story? We’d love to hear it!

Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to share how recess has helped your school or your child.

Guest Blog Post By, Kate Wheeler, Child Nutrition Specialist, Utah State Board of Education

Kate works on farm to fork and local procurement initiatives. Kate has an MPH from Emory University. Prior to joining the team at USBE, she worked with various food access programs in Oregon, Atlanta, and overseas.

Eating food that is both delicious and nutritious is a key part of a healthy lifestyle, but not all Utahns have equal access to healthy food. 135,000 children in Utah are food insecure, putting them at increased risk of diet-related diseases and stunting their opportunities for learning and growth.

The good news is that this is an exciting time to be working on healthy food access in Utah. Various groups are working on projects that seek to both “feed the need” (provide healthy food options to those who need it now) and “shorten the line” (strengthen our food system to eliminate root causes of hunger).

Start Smart Utah

The Start Smart Utah program is a bill that will provide students with additional access to nutritious food during the school day, including a requirement that all public schools who participate in the national school lunch program also participate in the national school breakfast program. Currently 105 Utah public schools do not participate in the breakfast program—that’s a lot of kids starting their day without a meal. If you’d like to track the progress of this bill in real time, sign up to get updates on HB 222 at le.utah.gov.

Incentivizing Local Food in Schools

Why do schools served canned peaches at lunch when we grow such delicious fresh peaches right here in Utah? Cost is a major factor. Other states have successfully overcome that barrier with incentive programs that reimburse school districts for purchases of local food. Utah Department of Agriculture and Food and Utah State Board of Education are working together to create one of these programs in Utah. We’ve requested $275,000 in appropriations this legislative session to help get it up and running—your help is needed to secure the funding. Click here to find out how you can advocate for this request.

Food Hubs

Food hubs are processing and distribution centers that focus on local food. They make it easier for small farmers to work together to sell their products to large institutions like school districts and hospitals. Utah is currently one of only five states without a food hub—but not for long! Sapa Investment Group is set to break ground on Utah’s first food hub this summer, and UDAF and the City of Salt Lake are working on support for additional food hub projects. Here’s to opening more markets for Utah’s small farmers, and making it easier for all of us to buy healthy local food!