Saturday, October 12, 2024
10/12/2024
Since the 1990’s the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) has led the school-based health surveillance work to coordinate the administration of the YRBS and Profiles statewide. The data provides significant insights utilized by Nebraska’s public health system, education agencies, and policy leaders to describe the current state and emerging risk behaviors of Nebraska adolescents. Results from both the YRBS and School Health Profiles (SHP) have been used to inform NE school health policies, programs, and activities, including legislated funding for schools to support mental health efforts. Internally within the NDE health surveillance data has also been used to inform professional development, plan and monitor programs, support health-related policies and regulations, seek funding to address emerging or worsening health challenges ranging from AWARE grant funding, 1801- CDC Healthy Schools funding, CDC How Right Now funding, and School Safety funding from national, state, and local funders to garner support for future program interventions and to support staff positions at the NDE that coordinate the YRBS and Profiles surveys and related school health programs. Given that the YRBS is the only school-based surveillance system to monitor all six priority health risk behaviors among students, and the Profiles is the only surveillance system to monitor how well schools are addressing these priority health-risk behaviors in Nebraska, and the NDE is the only agency that has administered these surveys from inception the continuation of these efforts is of utmost importance to improve health-related policies, programs, and activities for educators and youth. Funding for the grant in the amount of $112,500 will allow NDE to continue to coordinate the administration of the YRBS within our statewide partnership with the University of Nebraska and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services through the SHARP survey system. While the SHP’s wil l be used to provide improved professional development for school staff to assist in informing health education, health services programs, and policy decisions and to address the serious and growing health risks experience by adolescents and inform programs, resources, and supports available for Nebraska school districts.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).
