Health & Safety Fair

Barb Reiter, Jefferson County & Esther Lince, Madison County

During the past school year Jefferson County Health Department and SW Montana Prevention partnered to organize a Health and Safety Fair at Jefferson High School in Boulder (January) and Whitehall middle/HS (April).  Both events were very successful and engaged students with varying health and safety experiences. There were about 300 students at JHS and 240 students in Whitehall.

The administration, school nurses and counselors worked with the planners to make the event possible for all the targeted students.

Students came to the gym in groups of about 60 to 100 at a time and spent about 40 minutes going from booth to booth in smaller groups of 8-10 students. Each booth had about five minutes to interact with at least one health or safety message as students moved through the gym.  Each presenter did an educational activity and/or talked with each group of students on their topic.

Some topics included: social media/cell phone safety, substance abuse, tobacco and vaping, driver safety (including buckle up, distracted driving, speed, no DUI’s), brain health and concussion safety, managing stress, coping skills, sleep, exercise, nutrition, CPR.

All students were given a worksheet which they filled out and received a sticker from each booth. As students exited, they turned in the worksheets which made them eligible for the prize drawings.  Students were also provided with space to share their learnings and what they enjoyed about the event.