Safe and Healthy Schools

Safe and Healthy Schools (SHS) support physical health, foster mental and social-emotional well-being, and ensure a safe, inclusive, and culturally responsive environment for students, educators, and staff. This is an ongoing commitment that ensures that every student has access to learning, feels a sense of belonging, and is empowered to succeed.

Physical Health: Physical health refers to the absence of illness, injury, or disease in the body, as well as the presence of habits and practices that support fitness, nutrition, sleep, and overall physical well-being. Physical health encompasses access to healthcare for prevention, treatment, and management of health conditions.

Mental and Social-emotional Well-being: Mental and social-emotional well-being refers to a person's psychological and emotional state, as well as their ability to manage stress, cope with challenges, build positive relationships, and experience a sense of purpose.

Safe, Inclusive, and Culturally Responsive Environment: These environments ensure that every individual feels valued, respected, and supported regardless of their background, identity, or abilities. A safe environment prioritizes physical security and psychological safety, protecting against bullying, discrimination, or harm. Culturally responsive environments recognize and celebrate diversity, promote equity, and adapt practices to reflect and respect the cultural identities of students, educators, and staff. This also refers to physical safety within the physical school environment.

Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child

The Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) model focuses on youth by addressing critical education and health outcomes, organizing collaborative actions and initiatives that support students, and strongly engaging community resources. The WSCC approach is centered on supporting the needs of the whole child.is centered on supporting the needs of the whole child. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) have partnered to create the WSCC model, building upon aspects of the CDC’s familiar Coordinated School Health (CSH) model and the Whole Child Framework from the ASCD.

Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child Model

Expands the 8 domains of the CSH model into 10 domains
Combines the CSH model with the ASCD’s Whole Child framework
Demonstrates integration of health and education to improve academic achievement
Promotes increased alignment, integration, and collaboration between health and education in order to achieve improved cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development

Vermont Department of Health – Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child provides information and resources for school professionals. The Vermont Department of Health and the Agency of Education recommend using this model to achieve goals outlined in school continuous improvement plans and wellness policies and integrating it into a multi-tiered system of supports.