Wyoming Healthy Schools is a volunteer-run organization made up of individuals, families, and community partners who work to help schools in our state be healthy places for students to learn and staff to work. We welcome school and governmental partners, too. While there are many components of a healthy school, we focus on the physical school environment, such as indoor air quality and reducing the use of toxins, as well as improving the quality of food provided to students. To do this, we educate stakeholders and decisionmakers about these important, but sometimes overlooked, aspects of school health and empower them to make positive changes in schools in their communities.
The idea for Wyoming Healthy Schools was born when one Wyoming family’s kindergartener developed a chronic medical condition after heavy exposure in class to disinfecting wipes and a newly renovated classroom. The medical condition she developed was so severe it qualified as a disability. As the family searched for ways their child could still attend school with other students, they learned what makes for a healthy school environment, including many low-cost and no-cost changes that make school healthier for everyone. With these healthy school accommodations in place, their child went on to eventually graduate from a public high school in Wyoming.
Large school districts sometimes employ environmental health specialists and nutritionists who provide guidance and training on these issues. However, with our state’s small population, often there’s no one with this expertise in our school districts. In their absence, administrators, school boards, facilities managers, custodians, teachers, other school staff, students, and families have to make choices every day that affect school health without always knowing how to protect students, staff, and themselves. We hope the information and resources on this site can help fill the gap, leading to improved health and learning for all Wyoming students and school staff.
Wyoming Healthy Schools 