Results of the 2007 NH Youth Risk Behavior Survey were released to the State Board of Education on January 9, 2008. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention's Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) was administered to 1,638 students in 61 of 69 randomly selected public high schools in New Hampshire during the spring of 2007. Randomly selected classes of students completed a self-administered, anonymous, 99-item questionnaire. Survey procedures were designed to protect the privacy of students by allowing for anonymous and voluntary participation. Local parental permission procedures were followed before survey administration.
The 2007 NH Youth Risk Behavior Survey achieved the CDC’s weighted status, so the results of the survey could be generalized to all students in grades 9-12 in NH public high schools. NH is now able to look at trends in the data from 1993, 1995, 2003, 2005, and 2007. This information will be available by January 11, 2008, on the NH Department of Education’s website at http://www.ed.state.nh.us/education/data/index.htm.
Additionally, 36 of the 61 sampled public high schools and three schools not randomly chosen for the state report participated in an additional survey administration which used the 2007 YRBS questions to collect data from the majority of the students in their individual schools. The administration of these local school surveys was accomplished through an interagency agreement between the NH Department of Health and Human Services and the NH Department of Education. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will be producing local school level reports for the 24,129 surveys.
The YRBS is one component of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This system was designed to focus the nation on behaviors among youth related to the leading causes of mortality and morbidity among both youth and adults and to assess how these risk behaviors change over time. The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System measures behaviors that fall into six categories: (1) behaviors that result in unintentional and intentional injuries; (2) tobacco use; (3) alcohol and other drug use; (4) sexual behaviors that result in HIV infection, other sexually-transmitted diseases, and unintended pregnancies; (5) dietary behaviors; and (6) physical activity.
More information about the NH Youth Risk Behavior Survey, and the state survey, may be obtained from Mary Bubnis, Education Consultant, HIV/Health Program, New Hampshire Department of Education at (603) 271-3889, e-mail mbubnis@ed.state.nh.us , or on the NH Dept. of Education’s website at www.ed.state.nh.us/education/doe/organization/instruction/HealthHIVAIDS/youthrisk.htm.
For information about the DHHS school reports, please contact Jeffrey L. Metzger, Ph.D, M.Ed., Senior Management Analyst, SPF Epidemiologist / Evaluator, Bureau of Preventive Services, Division of Public Health Services, Department of Health and Human Services, 29 Hazen Drive, Concord, NH 03301, phone: (603) 271-6740, e-mail Jeffrey.L.Metzger@dhhs.state.nh.us.
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