Summit County parents have until the end of the month to opt their children into an important study that helps fund local services.
Across Utah, students in the sixth, eighth, 10th and 12th grades will be asked to participate in an assessment that evaluates their needs, known as the Student Health and Risk Prevention (SHARP) Survey. The survey, which is administered every two years, is the only study in the state that collects detailed data about topics such as mental health, substance abuse and bullying to determine a community’s specific needs, according to Pamella Bello, the director of behavioral health prevention at the Summit County Health Department.
“It gives kids a voice,” she said. “And that helps us determine what services are needed.”
All Summit County schools with eligible students have agreed to administer the SHARP Survey, but parents must consent for their children to partake. Health officials encourage caregivers to opt-in because there needs to be at least 60% participation for the results to be valid.
Bello said the 2021 survey results from the Park City School District, which enrolls the most students in Summit County, were not usable because they didn’t meet the minimum participation requirement. As a result, health officials and other nonprofits or government programs in the Park City area – such as Big Brothers, Big Sisters and Live Like Sam – could not use the data when seeking funding opportunities to develop community programs and services based on those students’ needs.
This year, the School District sent out its registration information before the SHARP Survey was written, which means it wasn’t included in the documents parents go through at the start of the academic year. Bello is concerned this will lead to another year of unusable results.
“We have to use the data to show what we need. We have to prove it to get grants,” she said.
The survey is anonymous, has around 130 questions and takes about 30 minutes to complete. All participants access the survey from the same link, which means it cannot be traced back to a user. It also doesn’t ask for any identifying information.
Not disclosing the name of the taker gives students more freedom when answering questions about sensitive topics such as their emotional wellbeing, including suicide, as well as school and community safety, underage drinking, parental involvement and other health issues.
There are misconceptions that asking youth about suicide or drug use increases their likelihood to engage in those behaviors, Bello said, but research shows that is not true. She recommends parents begin talking with their children about these topics in an age-appropriate way around the time they turn nine to ensure they’re receiving accurate information from a trusted source because they often decide their behavior by age 12.
The timeframe of the survey shows officials how answers have changed for students as they grow and helps track their progress. The results also allow experts to monitor community-wide trends, such as the increase in teen vaping, or provide varying services depending on a school districts’ needs.
Parents with children in the Park City School District must sign up by Feb. 24 to participate as the survey will be administered in early March. The analyzed results will then be presented at the end of the year.
Visit https://parkcitydistrict.sjc1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cSiCNcVdOqsbHGS to review and sign the consent form.