Sixth, eighth, tenth and twelfth graders in Utah can take the Student Health And Risk Prevention Survey in the spring.
So far, over 80% of kids’ parents in South Summit School District have registered for the survey. In North Summit School District, registration is over 70%. Park City School District families lag behind those numbers at about 30%.
Pamella Bello, Director of Behavioral Health Prevention at the Summit County Health Department, explained why the SHARP Survey matters.
“I cannot make up something and go get money for it and bring it to our county, we need to show it,” she said. “And so, this is the only survey in Utah that gets this data from the kids.”
Bello said the Park City School District needs to reach 60% participation for its data to be usable.
“The last SHARP Survey in Park City School District had very low participation,” Bello said. “So, we couldn't use the data. So, when we don't have data, I cannot go and write a grant and bring the services needed.”
Bello said part of the reason participation in PCSD has lagged this year is because a link to opt in to the survey was not included in school registration last year. State law requires school districts provide parents copies of the questions their kids will be asked before they opt in, but PCSD sent out registration forms for the current school year in early 2022, before the state had finalized this year’s questions.
North Summit and South Summit sent out their school registration forms last summer after the questions were released, so parents could read them and opt in while completing other mandatory tasks to reenroll their kids in school.
Some of the questions touch on sensitive subjects, such as mental health, drug use and gun violence. The idea is to identify risks and work to ensure kids have the support systems and resources they need.
SHARP data has allowed Summit County to identify trends; Bello cited teenage vaping in particular.
Some families have expressed concern about exposing children to things like suicide and drug use through the survey questions. Bello said studies have shown asking kids about risky behavior does not cause those behaviors. She said kids often know more than parents realize.
“It might be that the parents have not talked to them about it, but your kids have heard about it,” Bello said. “And so and that's the other reason why the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends it: because kids talk about this. And they want the parents to get information to their kids, instead of maybe another nine-year-old that has an older brother and told them something, and he's sharing it with your kids, and they have the wrong information.”
Utah conducts the survey every other year. It contains about 130 questions and is 35 minutes in length. Questions vary by grade level.
When it’s administered online, students use identical links to access the survey. This ensures the data remains anonymous.
Bello said school officials never handle online data themselves. Students’ responses go to an independent survey company that sends reports on the data back to the schools.
If parents would like to opt in to the survey, they can visit summitcountyhealth.org/sharpsurvey/.
