The majority of the July 15 Whitehall-Coplay Communities That Care meeting was spent reviewing the 2021 Pennsylvania Youth Survey data.

The anonymous survey is taken by students in grades 6-12 every two years to explore how different risk and protective factors affect the students in the district. This information is used to inform programming for future school years. Chapter topics include use of and access to alcohol, tobacco and other drugs; anti-social behavior; community and school climate and safety; social and emotional health; and systemic factors.

For this month’s meeting, the coalition focused on challenges or areas that might need more attention. Group members split into groups and looked at different categories. Denise Continenza, CTC coordinator and Penn State Extension educator, asked each group to identify three to five concerns to share with the group.

One of the biggest concerns noted was the rise in students reporting depression symptoms or suicidal ideation. These numbers, in general, increased drastically from the 2019 report. It was noted this is not surprising since this survey was taken in 2021 and includes the COVID-19 pandemic.

Regarding community and school climate and safety, if was reported students did not feel strong connections to the school and reported not enjoying being in school. Once again, it was noted the COVID-19 pandemic will be affecting these sentiments.

“How much of this lack of support for school is COVID-19 related?” Bill Fonzone, Whitehall-Coplay School Board member, asked.

The alcohol, tobacco and other drug report noted students reported higher numbers of parents providing or being permissive of alcohol usage. The Whitehall-Coplay School District numbers skewed higher than the county and state.

It was noted this has been an area of concern for the coalition in the past. Continenza reminded the group of the “Parents who host lose the most” campaign from a few years ago.

It was noted the 10th-grade students tended to have “more concerning” numbers reported throughout the report. This could be due to the fact they entered high school during the pandemic with virtual learning, according to coalition members.

Interpreting the data is a monthslong process and helps school district leaders plan for future programs.

The August meeting will involve discussion about specific programming and adjustments to best suit the students. The coalition will look at the areas of strength and concern and identify which current programs are still needed or if new programs should be introduced.

In other business, Melissa Fausey, systems change specialist at Penn State EPISCenter, attended the meeting in regard to the coalition checkup program. Fausey helps offer technical assistance with achieving goals previously identified within the group.

CTC members decided to work on increased communication and awareness in the community. To achieve this, the group decided to make yard signs detailing positive PAYS data points to spread public awareness about the group and its efficacy in the school district.

It was noted the yard signs are planned to be posted in the local parks or other places with heavy foot traffic, such as the Ironton Rail Trail.

A mock-up design was shared with the group earlier for feedback. The possibility of having a QR code on the sign was also suggested. The code could either take community members to the PAYS website for more information or to the CTC website.

It was noted the CTC website has not been updated in some time. Continenza reported this should probably be the coalition’s next step in its community/awareness initiative.

The next CTC meeting is set for Aug. 19.