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Celebrating America’s Healthiest Schools

Our Thriving Schools partner, Alliance for a Healthier Generation, announced its list of America’s Healthiest Schools for 2022, and we at Kaiser Permanente couldn’t be more thrilled to celebrate these schools’ accomplishments.

America’s Healthiest Schools is a prestigious annual recognition program celebrating schools for their work prioritizing the health needs of students and staff. In all, 406 schools earned recognition for the ways they’re activating health across one or more categories. Out of those 406, 11 schools achieved recognition across all 9 categories:

  • Increasing family and community engagement
  • Improving nutrition and food access
  • Enriching health education
  • Implementing local school wellness policy
  • Bolstering physical education and activity
  • Strengthening social-emotional health and learning
  • Cultivating staff well-being
  • Promoting tobacco-free schools
  • Supporting school health services

To win, schools must exemplify best practices in these topic areas, as measured against criteria in the Thriving Schools Integrated Assessment — a collaborative tool that provides actionable steps and credible resources to schools and districts to advance their wellness and educational goals.

Two areas in which our Thriving Schools program has focused support over the past decade —and continues to prioritize, given the great need — are the categories of cultivating staff well-being and strengthening social-emotional health and learning. Among this year’s awardees, 195 schools were recognized for implementing best practices around cultivating staff well-being, and 176 schools were recognized for strengthening social-emotional health and learning. These distinctions celebrate schools for creating environments where staff can thrive and students are healthy and ready to learn. We are especially proud of the schools that won awards for these achievements.

“The health of our nation’s schools requires everyone in the school community — students, staff, and teachers — to be supported in all areas of their health and well-being,” said Annie Reed, executive director, Kaiser Permanente Thriving Schools and Communities. “We congratulate and celebrate these schools for leading the way and demonstrating what healthy schools can look like.”

America’s Healthiest Schools is one of the longest-running school recognition programs in the United States. The awards program was founded in 2007 to recognize schools that demonstrate exemplary achievements in key measures related to children’s health, such as serving healthy meals and offering high-quality physical education. Over the years, the program has shifted to reflect a more comprehensive understanding of conditions that contribute to equitable, whole-child health.

Becoming one of America’s Healthiest Schools

Interested in tools and guidance to help your school create healthier environments that support students’ physical, social, and emotional well-being? Get started by visiting the Healthier Generation Action Center and creating a free account. From there, you can access the Thriving Schools Integrated Assessment and other resources to address the specific needs of your school community.

And stay tuned to our Thriving Schools blog for stories about some of America’s Healthiest Schools and their incredible achievements.

Learn more about America’s Healthiest Schools 2022 awardees.

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