National Coordinating
Committee on School Health

Over 30 member organizations in the health, education, and social services fields as well as over 50 representatives of Federal agencies and other organizations were represented at the 6th meeting of the National Coordinating Committee on School Health. The theme was "Stories and Statistics," focusing on the marketing of school health programs to communities as an essential component of support systems to ensure the development of healthy and well-educated children and youth.

Keynote speaker George Thompson of the Center for Leadership in School Reform put the need for and marketing of school health programs in the larger context of school reform. Mr. Thompson, a former school superintendent, noted that schools are now asked to do a more thorough job of educating America's children, as workplaces increasingly require higher-level skills, and there are fewer employment options for high-school dropouts or low-skilled graduates. Thus, the concern that America's schools are not doing well enough stems not from a decline in their quality, but from increased expectations. In order to meet society's new needs, schools need to target their efforts on student learning and redirect the work of the adults who administer and operate schools toward leadership and support of students' work. This kind of change must include not only new learning methods, but also a focus on other aspects of students' lives that affect their success at school, including both physical and mental health.

Following Mr. Thompson's remarks, the committee and its guests broke into four working groups to explore what marketing tools exist to promote school health, what tools are still needed, and how the participants could work together to better use existing marketing tools and fill the gaps. Emerging themes included the use of community focus groups, interdisciplinary training, internal marketing among the constituencies on the committee, establishment of a clearinghouse, development and dissemination of models that can be adapted to local needs, increased use of communications technology, involvement of youth, business sector participation, and research demonstrating the effectiveness of school health programs.

The committee cochairs also shared departmental initiatives and concerns. Under Secretary Ellen W. Haas spoke of the rapid enrollment of schools in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Team Nutrition Program and the promise of healthier meals for the millions of children who eat school breakfasts and lunches every day. Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Department of Education James W. Kohlmoos urged participants to invest the effort needed for successful collaboration and to take advantage of the opportunity to change the way communities and others interact with schools as they reevaluate their roles and open their doors to new partners. Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Earl Fox emphasized the need for Federal technical assistance to encourage schools to provide student health services. In particular, assistance would be helpful in determining what health costs can be supported by Federal/State programs, such as the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant, and in obtaining third party reimbursements for services rendered.

Go to Focus, Spotlight, Activities, In the Literature, Etcetera

Return to the Prevention Report index.

Back to ODPHP.