Helping Students Build Healthy Habits for Life

September 10, 2026

The habits children build today can shape their health for years to come. Nutritious food, regular physical activity and supportive school environments can help lower a child’s lifelong risk of type 2 diabetes and other chronic conditions.

Schools play an important role in that work. Children spend much of their time at school, making it a natural place to learn about wellness and practice healthy habits.

Diabetes Free SC (DFSC), an initiative of the BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina Foundation, supports two organizations working to create healthier school environments across the state: the MUSC Boeing Center for Children’s Wellness and the Alliance for a Healthier Generation.

The organizations work with schools in different parts of South Carolina, but their efforts share a common goal. Both help schools create environments that support good nutrition, physical activity and overall wellness.

Why Healthy School Environments Matter

The rise of type 2 diabetes among younger people is tied in part to changes in food choices, physical activity and everyday environments. Children who do not have access to nutritious food or opportunities to be active can face a greater risk of developing diabetes later in life.

Early action can help lower that risk. When healthy choices are part of the school day, students have regular opportunities to learn and practice habits that can support their long-term health.

This work is not about placing the responsibility on children alone. It focuses on making changes throughout the school environment so healthy choices are easier and more available to students and staff.

Helping Schools Build a Culture of Wellness

The MUSC Boeing Center for Children’s Wellness works with school districts to improve nutrition, increase physical activity and support the social and emotional wellness of students and staff. The program gives schools the flexibility to build on their current work and choose strategies that fit the needs of their communities.

A key part of this approach is the School Wellness Checklist. Schools use the checklist to plan and track wellness efforts in areas such as nutrition, physical activity, social and emotional learning and staff wellness.

Schools earn points for the practices they put in place. Those that earn enough points receive an award that can help support continued wellness efforts.

During the 2024-25 school year, 98 schools took part in the School Wellness Checklist program. Of those schools, 88 earned an award. More than 50,000 students participated in wellness programs supported through the checklist.

The program recognizes that every school community is different. Rather than giving every school the same plan, the Boeing Center helps school leaders identify practical steps that can work for their students and staff.

Supporting the Health of the Whole Child

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation also helps schools make health and wellness part of their everyday culture. The organization provides school leaders with tools, guidance and support to improve the health of students and staff.

Through the America’s Healthiest Schools program, schools can earn national recognition for their work across nine areas related to health, nutrition and wellness. The program considers efforts such as strengthening nutrition and food access, increasing physical activity and supporting the well-being of students and staff.

In 2025, 105 South Carolina schools were recognized as America’s Healthiest Schools. Four schools earned All-Star recognition by receiving awards in all nine categories:

• Beechwood Middle School
• Butler Academy
• Legacy Early College Elementary School
• Northwood Middle School

South Carolina ranked fourth in the nation for the number of schools recognized in 2025.

The recognition reflects the work schools are doing to make wellness a part of the learning environment. It also shows that school health involves more than food and exercise. A strong wellness culture considers the different factors that help children learn, grow and thrive.

Two Partners Working Toward One Goal

The Boeing Center and the Alliance use different tools and work with different schools, but their efforts complement each other.

Participating schools receive coaching, training, technical assistance, wellness awards and other support. The two organizations also use 14 shared measures to track changes in school policies and practices. These measures focus on four key areas: school wellness committees, student nutrition, student physical activity and staff wellness.

This shared approach allows the organizations to measure progress in consistent ways while giving schools the flexibility to respond to local needs.

DFSC helps align the work of the two partners, encourage shared learning and reduce duplication. Each organization can build on its strengths while working toward the same long-term goal: helping children develop habits that can reduce their risk of diabetes later in life.

A Growing Statewide Reach

The combined reach of the school wellness initiative shows how this work has grown across South Carolina.

During the 2024-25 school year, DFSC-supported efforts worked toward healthier environments for 173,245 students across 318 schools in 21 districts.

These figures demonstrate the scale of the coordinated work. The Boeing Center and the Alliance are reaching students through different programs, schools and regions while remaining focused on shared wellness goals.

The work also reaches schools serving communities that may face greater barriers to nutritious food, physical activity and other resources that support health. By helping schools improve their policies, practices and environments, the initiative supports changes designed to benefit the entire school community.

Healthy Changes That Can Last

The school wellness initiative focuses on changes that schools can build into their regular routines. Examples include forming active wellness committees, providing nutrition education, offering classroom activity breaks and creating more opportunities for physical activity during and after the school day.

These changes can make wellness part of how a school operates, rather than a single event or short-term activity. They can also give students more chances to practice healthy habits throughout the day.

When school staff, families and community partners take part, the benefits can extend beyond the classroom. Wellness can become part of the culture of an entire school community.

Building Healthier Futures Together

Reducing the lifelong risk of diabetes takes time. It also takes coordinated action in the places where children learn, play and grow.

The Boeing Center and the Alliance show how two organizations can use different approaches while working toward a shared goal. Their work helps schools make practical changes that support students today and may help protect their health in the years ahead.

By supporting and aligning these partner-led efforts, DFSC is helping more South Carolina schools create environments where students can build healthy habits for life.