If you are a parent of a child with a food allergy, you may be wondering how your child will be safe in school. The good news is that the dramatic increase in food allergies in recent years has caused many schools and pre-schools to develop food-allergy management strategies. This is especially true of the elementary schools in the Reading school system.

Food Allergy Task Force and Guidelines

In January 2004 a Food Allergy Task Force was created by Superintendent Pat Schettini to create a strategy for managing food allergies in the Reading Public Schools. In September 2004 a Pilot Draft of Food Allergy Administrative Guidelines for the Reading Public Schools was produced by this task force and implemented as a pilot program in all Reading elementary schools during the 2004-2005 school year. The Reading Public Schools have since adopted these guidelines as the official guidelines for the 2005-2006 school year.

NOTE: The location of the Reading guidelines is currently posted on Edline (Go to http://www.edline.net/pages/Instructors/Food_Service_Menus and then click on Allergy Information and then District Guidelines). Alternatively, to obtain a copy of these guidelines, contact the Superintendent's Office (see http://reading.k12.ma.us/ for contact information).

Reading's guidelines were influenced by a number of sources including:

• informal surveys of policies in over 8 surrounding towns (including Wakefield, North Reading, North Andover, Belmont, and Winchester),

• the experiences of parents who were currently in the school system , and

• the document Managing Life Threatening Food Allergies in Schools which was written by the Massachusetts Department of Education and is distributed to all school districts (NOTE: If the above link does not work or takes too long to download, you may request a copy from the Massachusetts Department of Education).

Allergy-Friendly Culture

The underlying food-allergy management strategy of the Reading Public Schools is not to implement a one-size-fits-all policy, but rather to create an allergy-friendly culture. An allergy-friendly culture includes all members of the school population and stresses food allergy awareness, practical everyday management, and responsiveness.

The Reading Public Schools have made great strides in improving food allergy management with the goal of instituting an allergy-friendly culture. This strategy has significantly raised awareness and has led to some helpful practices in the elementary schools such as dedicated hand-washing, full-time school nurse at each school, allergy emergency drills, PTO event safety guidelines, and a food allergy awareness lesson taught to all first-graders. As different schools come up with new "best practices" for addressing food allergy management, these ideas are shared with other schools.

Reading’s goal of creating an allergy-friendly culture is reinforced by the Superintendent and Principals. Positive relationships between parents, teachers, nurses, and students help increase the level of understanding every day and minimize the number of risky situations and potential incidents.