Springfield Youth Health Survey Initiative

ABOUT THE SURVEYS

The Springfield Youth Health Survey (YHS) is administered to 8th grade students enrolled at Springfield Public Schools. It is a modified version of the survey used by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. The survey contains questions about diet, exercise, screen time, mental health, bullying, violence, health, alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and other drugs, and more. 

The Springfield Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is administered to 10th and 12th grade students enrolled at Springfield Public Schools. The instrument used in Springfield is a modified version of the survey created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and used statewide by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The survey content is similar to the YHS, and it contains questions about safety, violence-related behaviors, bullying, self-harm, alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and other drugs, communication and education about sexuality and sexual health services, and more.

Each year, the SYHSI Planning Team reviews and modifies the questionnaires to reflect local interests and concerns.

For copies of the questionnaires that were used, click here.

Using Data for Action

Watch Kathleen Szegda, Director of Community Research and Evaluation, and Mabeline Velez, our former intern and research assistant discuss the importance of data. In this video, Kathleen offers an example of how youth health survey data was used to make changes in Springfield Public Schools. Learn more about actions taken to address youth mental health in our 2021 report.