The COVID-19 virus brought on a public health emergency that massively disrupted school systems and learning nationwide. During the 2020-2021 school year, many local education agencies (LEAs) in Pennsylvania and other states adopted remote learning to help slow the virus's spread. However, remote learning came with challenges for students,…

The quality of life of students at school is an increasingly topical issue in relation both to public health issues, made more acute by the pandemic and successive confinements, and to the technical nature of future jobs which means training has become an economic issue. There are therefore two issues, one linked to health and the other to school…

Background: Internationally 18% of youth are obese. Fitness testing can be used to establish fitness surveillance, which can inform policy and targeted interventions aimed at addressing obesity. The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of overweight, obesity, and low fitness in Idaho school-aged youth through a pilot study.…

As COVID-19 accelerated through spring of 2020 the question became how will schools cope with protracted closure? Devising strategies to engage and educate students through full-time, online learning became a priority. At Tufts CSE we specialize in creating high school biomedical science curricula that foster engagement with science and build…

Youth suicide is a serious public health issue in the United States. It is currently the third leading cause of death for youth aged 10 to 19. School-based prevention programs may be an effective method of educating youth and enhancing their help-seeking. Most school-based suicide prevention programs have not been rigorously evaluated for their…

School violent victimization is a serious public health problem among youth. The current study investigated the association between youth alcohol use and school violent victimization among middle school and high school students ("N" = 54,361). The PRIDE national survey for Grades 6-12 was administered to youth in their classrooms.…

The Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is administered by the Montana Office of Public Instruction every two years to students in grades 7 through 12. The purpose of the survey is to help monitor the prevalence of behaviors that not only influence youth health, but also put youth at risk for the most significant health and social problems…

Background: Childhood obesity continues to be a public health problem in the United States. Increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables (F/V) is one strategy for decreasing high consumption of energy-dense, high-fat foods, thereby improving weight status. Many Orleans Parish public schools were provided with salad bars (SBs) to augment school…

Background: This study examined differences in students' time spent in physical activity (PA) across secondary schools in rural, suburban, and urban environments and identified the environment-level factors associated with these between school differences in students' PA. Methods: Multilevel linear regression analyses were used to examine the…

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is an epidemiologic surveillance system that was established by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to help monitor the prevalence of behaviors that not only influence youth health, but also put youth at risk for the most significant health and social problems that can occur during…

Latino girls (Latinas) experience disproportionate rates of emotional distress, including suicidal ideation, which may be indicative of inadequate coping abilities. Prevention of mental health problems, a U.S. public health priority, is particularly critical for Latina adolescents due to lack of access to mental health treatments. The purpose of…

A long-term public health goal in the United States involves convincing adolescents to postpone sexual activity or promote responsible sexual activity. This study investigated the effect of using infant simulators on sexuality, child care attitudes and knowledge with a sample of 309 high school students from seven different states. The treatment…

Childhood obesity and its repercussions will be one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century. Promoting physical activity and preventing the decline of children's fitness and the increase of childhood obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease therefore need to be a high priority. So far, besides a few large-scale…

The use of illicit and licit drugs continues to be a major public health concern. Many prevention and drug education programs address this issue by attempting to enhance self-esteem. The idea is that increased levels of self-esteem will serve as a protective factor in decreasing the motivation and increasing the resistance to use drugs. This study…

The December 2008 release of China's new "Guidelines for health education in primary and secondary schools" by the Ministry of Education addressed many of the concerns arising from the academic and popular discourse on Chinese adolescent sexuality and sexuality education. The focus of this reform, common with similar reforms elsewhere in…