The Wake County School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) presented its 2025 annual report to the Wake County Board of Education on Oct. 21, outlining recommendations and commendations across nutrition, student mental health, technology policy and active-transportation programs.

The council’s liaison, Brian Glendening, Director of Health and Physical Education for Wake County Public School System, told the board the SHAC is “charged with providing recommendations to the board of education and the superintendent” and that the council’s work aligns with the whole child/whole school/whole community model.

Michelle Mulvihill, SHAC co‑chair, told the board the council currently has representation across each area of the WISC model and is seeking better ways to engage students. She thanked staff and partners and recognized Paula DeLuca for “her commitment to children nutrition in the SHAC.”

Why it matters: The council’s recommendations affect district policy and programs used systemwide, from student surveys used for grants to school meal policy and safety initiatives.

Key items and recommendations

- Share food-recovery pilot: SHAC commended the pilot that included eight schools and recommended the board learn more about the Share program and support expansion into about 10 additional schools and some middle schools. Glendening listed the pilot schools and the recommended expansion schools by name.

- Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) and Youth Tobacco Survey (YTS): SHAC commended the board for updating policy to allow YRBS/YTS as opt-out and recommended continued communication to principals about oversampling to obtain usable local data. The council offered to work with PTAs to supply volunteers for survey administration.

- Technology and cell-phone policy: SHAC commended the board for addressing technology and cell-phone policy early and urged continuation of the board’s three‑phase plan to develop a multiyear technology policy. The SHAC recommended additional discussion of social media in either the technology or bullying policy and asked for a review of the cell-phone policy’s safety/security impact after implementation.

- Mental-health services: The council commended availability of telehealth mental-health appointments for students and noted the district had initially won a multimillion-dollar school-based mental-health grant that was later canceled by the U.S. Department of Education. SHAC recommended broader communication about the district’s PREPARE model and that telehealth be expanded for staff as well as students.

- School meals and CEP: SHAC commended the district’s expansion of Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) schools, noted collection of $107,000 in Angel Fund donations (to cover roughly 4,800 breakfasts and more than 21,000 lunches), and recommended the wellness policy explicitly prohibit punishment for students with meal debt.

- Active-transportation programs: SHAC commended All Kids Bike and Safe Routes to School work and recommended a standardized bike-maintenance process, clearer metrics for the program impact, and better PTA outreach about bike-sharing between schools.

Board response and next steps

Board members thanked SHAC for the report and said they would consider making legislative updates a standing agenda item. SHAC representatives asked the board to share policy drafts and to keep the council informed as policies — particularly the technology and cell-phone policies — develop.

Ending

SHAC representatives urged the board to continue monitoring the statewide legislative environment and to communicate program details and implementation results to parents and the council as policies are developed.