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NEDA TOOLKIT for Educators School strategies for assisting students with eating disorders Teachers, administrators, and staff • Develop a student assistance program (SAP) and protocol, if one is not already in place (see sample SAP information form), for students, faculty, and staff to channel nonacademic concerns about a student. This should create an appropriate pathway that adheres to the local laws and regulations governing communications among teachers/parents/ students/outside healthcare. • Designate a subgroup (of at least two members) of the SAP to learn about eating disorders and share their knowledge and expertise with other school personnel and plan an in-service, if possible. This should include learning about effective strategies for identifying, preventing and supporting students with eating disorders. When assembling the subgroup, consider including the school nurse, school psychologist, guidance counselor, and other individuals who are well-situated for early identification of disordered eating in students. • If a full training program is not possible, plan some time at a faculty meeting to discuss eating disorders or hand out basic information to staff on signs and symptoms of eating disorders, addressing concerns with students and/or parents, and coach and teacher tip sheets. • Create specific guidelines on referrals for students suspected of having an eating disorder. Be prepared to refer students and families to appropriate local counseling resources and medical practitioners who are familiar with eating disorders, if available. Also obtain options for individuals with limited or no insurance coverage. • Update school anti-harassment and anti- discrimination policies to ensure they include provisions about physical appearance and body shape. Ensure that a protocol is in place for students to report teasing, bullying, or harassment based on weight or appearance. Consequences for bullying behavior should be clearly outlined and communicated to students. • Decide which staff will take responsibility for monitoring and communicating changes in a student’s well-being through appropriate channels to concerned parties (and in accordance with confidentiality, laws, and SAP protocols). That teacher or staff person should take on the role of “checking in” with the student each week for a few minutes to see how he/she is. This may involve an informal chat during lunch, recreation time, or before or after school as appropriate. • Use checklists of typical physical, social, behavioral, and psychological signs and symptoms of eating disorders to facilitate monitoring changes that could signal progression to a more serious condition so that a student can be referred to specialist support as warranted. • Work towards the elimination of student weighing and BMI measurements in health, PE, and other classes. If you can’t, make it a policy not to weigh students publicly or in close proximity to fellow students. Consider eliminating weigh-in policies for sports programs as well. • Advocate for a wide range of tasty and nutritious foods in school cafeterias, and vending machines with a variety of snacks and beverages. • Consider offering a community outreach program on eating disorders; invite experts in your area to speak on the topic. • Review posters/books/materials in the school to ensure they include a broad variety of body shapes, sizes, and ethnicities. • Ensure that students of all sizes are encouraged to participate in school activities such as band, cheerleading, student government, theater groups, etc. Ensure that students are not typecast by appearance in drama roles. Page  | 17