Courtesy of Families Leading Change Jillian Freeman, left, and Olivia Turman received the WV Healthy Kids Healthy Families “Unstoppable Award” in December for their advocacy work on education policy.
Courtesy of Families Leading Change Jillian Freeman, left, and Olivia Turman received the WV Healthy Kids Healthy Families “Unstoppable Award” in December for their advocacy work on education policy.
Courtesy of Families Leading Change Olivia Turman, right, and Jillian Freeman are pictured alongside users of their people-powered smoothie bike.
SOUTH CHARLESTON — Jillian Freeman and Olivia Turman, students at Barboursville Middle School, received the WV Healthy Kids Healthy Families "Unstoppable Award" for their advocacy work on education policy in December, according to a news release from Families Leading Change.
Turman and Freeman both addressed the West Virginia Board of Education during its meeting in August 2017 on their stand to keep West Virginia school nutrition standards strong as the new West Virginia Department of Education policy 4321.1 was online for 30-day public comment and ultimately being decided in August.
The two Cabell County students made public comments on the policy and also encouraged others prior to the end of the comment period to make comments on the policy so the board would not take steps backwards on the state policy.
The students were commended by the WV BOE on their courage and bravery to speak in public on how important it is for all West Virginia students to have the opportunity to eat healthy foods, including during school parties and school-sponsored sporting events by offering healthy concessions.
Turman and Freeman received a Try This WV mini grant in 2016 to build a healthy concessions cart, which features a people-powered smoothie bike and small physical activity equipment. They have been taking it around Barboursville to school and community events over the last few months. They recently received a Families Leading Change mini grant to expand on their cart and offer mobile healthy cooking classes to after-school programs.
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