On Friday August 22nd, Northwood High School’s SBHC held an open house for its staff and teachers. The wellness center open house included healthy snacks, blood pressure screenings, acupuncture demos, tours of the wellness center, and chair massages. Over 40 Northwood staff and teachers attended with over 20 staff receiving acupuncture demos and 11 attendees receiving chair massages. The open house provided the SBHC with the opportunity to discuss their services with teachers and staff.
Azim Ross works in the Northwood High SBHC as part of the Pride Youth Services division, and had this to say about teacher and staff involvement to promote the SBHC:
We absolutely need the teachers [to promote the wellness center] because not only do they have access to the students that need the services. We need the teachers to have the long term relationships with the students. Its great that Northwood teachers are so open to the helping us promote the wellness center.
Wellness center and teachers and staff make a great team for reaching the students in need for services. Northwood’s open house was a great success and addressed not only the needs of the attendees but also what they could do to help Northwood students be healthier. Northwood High’s SBHC open house was made possible through the Hallways to Health Initiative.
Love what Northwood did?? Here are some tips to publicize your SBHC:
• Present at a school orientation meeting
• Invite staff for a SBHC tour and provide refreshments.
• Meet with school counselors, social workers, and school nurses
• Ask the school principal for a bulletin board to advertise the SBHC
• Give teachers posters about the SBHC for their classrooms
• Present at a Parent Night and have a table at Freshman Orientation
• Advertise to students with morning announcements, tables at lunch, or during Division or Home Room
• Reach out to the Athletic Director and coaches and ask that their teams register at the SBHC for sports physicals
• Take 10 minutes each day to walk around the school. This allows students and teachers to see you outside of the SBHC and as part of the school
• Eat lunch in the teacher’s lounge – be ready to talk about the SBHC with interested teachers!
Looking for more resources? You can find a ton of resources at the Alliance for Healthier Generation and the Thriving Schools websites.