At the North Royalton Board of Education’s September 13 meeting, the Board approved an agreement with Ohio University to provide data use and confidentiality when using The Ohio Healthy Youth Environments Survey (OHYES!), that will be administered to grades 7 through 12. The survey is used to measure the health risk behaviors and environmental factors that impact youth health and safety.
OHYES! is a voluntary online survey that is administered by the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services and is taken during a class period and usually takes about twenty minutes. The survey is given to seventh to twelfth grade students, ages twelve and over and is offered to both public and private schools. No names are attached to the survey, which includes information about demographics, and health-related issues, such as alcohol use, illegal and prescription drug use, safety, gambling, suicide and family factors, among other things. Each school district can modify the survey, if desired. According to the State’s website, “administration will occur every four years; however, some schools may collect data annually for federal grants.”
School districts across Ohio may utilize the survey in order to detect trends in their district. North Royalton School District has been utilizing this survey since the inception of OHYES!, in 2015. North Royalton Director of Pupil Services Julie Bogden said that before this survey was offered, the district had administered the 40 Developmental Assets survey for many years, which asked children about how connected they feel in their community/home.
“Student participation is completely voluntary. Students can skip any questions they do not feel comfortable answering. Parents who do not want students to participate are required to complete the Opt Out form and mail it to the school or have the student return it to the school. A form must be filled out for each individual student,” according to the Ohyes.ohio.gov website. “Ohio law requires parents be informed of school surveys. Parents will be sent a letter by their child’s school notifying them of the survey and their option to opt out each child. This OHYES! process meets the legal requirements and is commonly known as ‘passive consent,’ because it minimizes administrative burden on the schools and maintains student confidentiality, while maintaining sufficient response rates.”
Bogden said that the State determines when the surveys are available. “In the past it has been in the late fall (Nov/Dec). With COVID last year, the survey became available in the spring. It has not yet been announced when it will occur this school year.” She said that if the survey is administered in the fall, the district usually receives the results in the spring. If done in the spring, the results usually come in late summer.
When asked how the survey results are utilized, Bogden stated that “the results of the survey have been used in a multitude of ways, such as connecting with “LifeAct.” This is an organization that provides lessons to select grades at the Middle School and High School with a focus on ‘See something, say something’ surrounding a student’s knowledge of a friend or themselves who may be struggling with their emotions and there is concern that some type of support is needed. It has impacted our risk assessment process for students expressing thoughts of suicide ideation and what level of supports or interventions may be needed to assist the student/family.”
For more information and a sample of a survey, the State’s website is https://www.ohyes.ohio.gov.

By GLORIA PLEVA KACIK
Contributing Writer