School Health Priorities and Needs Research Report
In May 2020, Kaiser Permanente teamed with Alliance for a Healthier Generation, and other national school health partners to survey educators across the nation about overall readiness to return to learning for the upcoming school year.
What are School Health Priorities and Needs for Reopening?
Educators shared their concerns about keeping students and staff safe, health challenges that are anticipated in the coming school year and resources needed to promote the physical and social-emotional health of the school community. Many recognized they will need help addressing student and staff trauma as a result of the pandemic.
With the support of the University of California, Nutrition Policy Institute and the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, we’ve developed a paper that describes the findings from educator surveys, including reflections on the unexpected benefits or “silver linings” of the extensive disruption, rapid adaptations, and changes experienced in spring 2020.
As a result of those findings, Kaiser Permanente has led the development of the “Planning for the Next Normal at School Playbook” to equip school and district leaders across the nation with specific, evidence-informed guidance and operating procedures to put into place systems that keep school communities mentally and physically safe as we shape a new approach to learning — one that more fully addresses the complex needs of students, school staff and teachers, and families.
