School Wellness Project

School Health Connection’s school wellness project aims to improve the health and wellbeing of students and families at several New Orleans schools by improving the school environment, services and educational opportunities. With funding from the Kellogg Foundation, the school wellness project increases health promotion activities for students and families, enhances student health services, and provides technical assistance to implement a Coordinated School Health program at each school.

If your school is starting a new coordinated health and wellness program, this guide can provide you with steps to follow and resources needed to get a program off the ground.  School Wellness Toolkit

About/Background

In May 2009, School Health Connection began a health and wellness collaborative with two New Orleans public charter schools, Warren Easton Charter High School and New Orleans College Prep, with the goal of creating a healthier school-community environment on both campuses. 

The school wellness project has three main goals and related objectives:

1.  Increase protective factors for youth and families through targeted health promotion and health  education programs.

• Provide additional health promotion education to students that addresses high risk behaviors and seeks to enhance knowledge and change risky behaviors.
• Provide training experiences to parents to complement information provided to students, and to enhance parent’s knowledge and their ability to communicate with their children.

2.  Enhance student health services at the school campus.

• Evaluate school health needs and identify specific goals for enhancing health services.
• Foster a productive relationship between school health staff and school-based health center staff.
• Establish a referral system to provide primary care services to students at schools without school-based health clinics.

3.  Change school culture to reflect a priority on comprehensive health by creating a Coordinated School Health action plan.

• Form a school health advisory committee that oversees health and wellness activities.
• Complete a comprehensive school health assessment using an assessment tool, such as the CDC’s School Health Index.
• Develop an individualized action plan for coordinated school health at each school.
• Provide support and technical assistance in improving components of school health.