Seperation of burger and school?

I came across an interesting article about a school district in Florida that has been facing a great deal of heat due to a program it has instituted with McDonald's, where by students receive free happy meals for good grades (It's called "Straight A's, with a Burger for As A Prize"- I've posted the article under the Delicious Dishing section of the blog). The article discusses how the McDonald's program brings to the forefront issues such as marketing to kids and encouraging healthy eating habits to students.

The article is a sign of how times have definitely changed. When I was in elementary school, we had a reading program, called Book It that was sponsored by Pizza Hut. It was hugely successful, and I do to a certain extent credit the enthusiasm that I had for reading at that age to this program. The idea was that after you read a certain number of books, you would receive a coupon for a free personal pan pizza and a star on you Book It button. The button was sort of a badge of accomplishment you could show to your friends. The program was very popular at the time and is actually still around today.

From my perspective, rewarding kids with the fast-food that they love for a job well done is not a new concept, but with all the concern around obesity, trans-fats and other healthy issues like high cholesterol and high blood pressure, these are turbulent times for these chains. They have to choose which battles to fight, and anything having to do with kids is an especially touchy subject. Academic incentive programs like those run by McDonald's and Pizza Hut can help improve literacy and develop a love for learning in students, but it is also up to parents/caretakers to ensure that their children have a balanced diet and an active lifestyle.

I think the larger issue that this brings up is whether schools are taking too heavy a hand when it comes to determining what children while classes are in session. I am all for providing healthier lunch and snack options in the cafeteria and limiting the sale of soda and other sugary drinks at school, but completely banning cupcakes? I recently spoke to one mother of two little boys who mentioned that sweets such as cakes and cookies can no longer be brought in for children's birthdays, so parents have taken to bringing pencils and erasers as treats instead. This saddens me! You can't put a candle in a pencil and make a wish. And erasers don't taste very good.

It will be interesting to see how schools continue to try to improve the eating habits of students over the next several years. But I do hope they take the mystery meat off the lunch menu soon.