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Q: What topic won't be covered in a federal survey Omaha Public Schools students will take part in for the first time in 15 years?
A. Sex.
B. Tobacco use.
C. Nutrition.
D. Physical activity.
If you answered A, you nailed it.
Students in the district will take the federal Youth Risk Behavior Survey, but this time the survey won't include questions about sexual activity — which had earlier caused the district to end its participation.
An Omaha school board committee was recently briefed on the plan to give the modified survey of 38-multiple choice questions to 1,425 randomly selected high school students in fall 2010 and fall 2012.
The OPS data is needed, said district health supervisor Sharon Wade, so the Douglas County Health Department can meet the requirements of a two-year, $5.7 million grant aimed at giving people more opportunities to exercise and eat better.
“It will benefit the whole community,” Wade said of the grant. The modified survey, she said, will focus on students' dietary habits, tobacco use and physical activity.
OPS joins all the public school districts in Douglas County in agreeing to participate in the modified survey, said Mary Balluff of the Douglas County Health Department.
In 1995, the idea of asking middle school students four questions about their sexual behavior raised enough ire among parents that the OPS board opted for a parental consent form. Among the questions: “With how many different people have you ever had sexual intercourse?”
High school students were asked eight questions about their sexual behavior, including: “How many times have you been pregnant or gotten someone pregnant?”
Soon after that survey was administered, the district opted out of it. A 2003 community effort to get OPS students back into the survey was unsuccessful.
Some Iowa schools over the years also have declined to participate in the full survey because of concerns about the questions on sex, said Elaine Watkins-Miller of the Iowa Department of Education.
About 60 Nebraska high schools administer the full survey, which has been used in the state since 1991, said Julane Hill of the State Department of Education.
Some Lincoln high schools have been asked to participate this year, said Terry Macholan, the district's student services director. “We're working to do that,” he said. The district hasn't given that survey recently.
The Millard Public Schools haven't participated in the Youth Risk Behavior Survey because of questions about sexual activity, spokeswoman Amy Friedman said.
The Elkhorn Public Schools have participated in the full survey, but parents had to sign a consent form, said Superintendent Steve Baker.
“Our past participation has not raised red flags,'' he said.
The modified survey OPS students will answer should take about 20 minutes to complete, said OPS research director Carla Noerrlinger.
Each Douglas County high school will receive $300 for taking part. Students who return a signed parental consent form will get a $10 gift card, regardless of whether consent is given, Wade said.
Contact the writer:
444-1037, michaela.saunders@owh.com
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