Background: Families in high-risk communities for COVID-19 transmission experienced a disproportionate burden during the pandemic. This study assessed these families' needs, changes in children's well-being, and perceptions related to the pandemic. Methods: Four online surveys were administered January 2021 to September 2021 to parents of…

Background: Teachers' health behaviors and mental well-being are important for their chronic disease risk and reducing burnout. This study investigates the health-related behaviors and psychological distress of Australian teachers compared with other occupations. Methods: Data from the nationally representative Australian National Health Survey…

Background: The benefits of delaying school start times for secondary students are well-established. However, no previous study has considered how changing school start times impacts sleep and daytime functioning for K-12 teachers. Methods: Teachers in a large suburban school district completed 3 annual surveys (pre-change n = 1687, post-change n…

Background: Many schools implement well-intentioned food allergy policies; however, may not ease parents'/children's worry and concern. The purpose of this study was to (1) explore children's and parents' perceptions their school's food allergy policy and (2) compare these perceptions to the documented school policy. Methods: Children ages 8 to 18…

Background: The school climate concept has been promising, but has long-standing critiques that have not been adequately addressed to date. The "School as a Protective Factor" approach represents one attempt to offer a new approach that builds on and extends beyond the concept of school climate while addressing previously identified…

Background: The benefits of youth engagement are well documented. In this paper, we examine youth engagement in America's Promise Alliance's Every School Healthy initiative, a part of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's "Together for Healthy and Successful Schools Initiative (THSS)." Methods: Six community acceleration sites were…

Background: Bullying and poverty are each associated with poor health in adolescents. We examined socioeconomic differences in the association of bullying and health. Methods: The 2017/2018 Canadian Health Behaviour of School-aged Children study surveyed 21,750 youth (9-18 years). We used linear regression models to investigate interactive effects…

Background: Play is essential for child growth and development, and may have academic and social-emotional implications. To understand the relationship between in-school play opportunities and academic achievement (AA) and social-emotional well-being among elementary school students, a systematic review of the current in-school play literature was…

Background: The workplace is an important setting for health protection, health promotion, and disease prevention programs. In the school setting, employee health and well-being programs can address many physical and emotional concerns of school staff. This systematic review summarizes evidence-based approaches from employee health and well-being…

Background: Physical activity is beneficial to physical, social, and emotional well-being, and schools are required to provide opportunities to engage in physical activity. While physical education and school sport have been extensively researched, little is known about the value of informal, unstructured, exercise opportunities. Methods: This…

Background: School environments are important to consider for children's health. This study aims to determine if childhood peer bullying and school connectedness are associated with adolescent adiposity. Methods: A total of 3377 children from the age 9 child interview of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study had self-reported bullying and…

Background: This practice paper exemplifies a systematic approach used to learn about existing mental well-being programs for youth 11-14 years to inform curriculum development for after-school settings. Methods: We reviewed 3389 mental well-being programs from publicly accessed databases and conducted a content analysis using inductive and…

Background: Individuals learn and develop across their lifespan in response to the people with whom they interact in settings, communities, cultures, and experiences. Collaborative research and policy efforts underscore the critical and reparative role of identity-safe, culturally driven, and relationship-rich environments--in classrooms, schools,…

Background: In the United States (U.S.), 77% of school district leaders reported that their students had fallen behind in their social-emotional development due to COVID-19 school closures. Although research has measured indicators of social-emotional well-being from the perspective of other informants, little is known about student perceptions of…

Background: Conceptualizations of health have expanded to include indicators of adolescents' physical and mental wellness, rather than solely the absence of diseases or disorders. Although extensive research has identified links between mental and physical wellness, few studies have investigated the relationship between health promotion and…