Central High students urge continued funding for school-based health center, describe upcoming health events

Students from Central High School’s Youth Advisory Committee told the Central School District 13J board on March 3 that the district’s school-based health center provides frequent, low-cost care to students and the broader community and urged continued support and funding.

"Only 30 out of 1,200 schools have a school based health center. Our school nurse refers about 10 students a day to the school based health center," Naomi Flores, a senior and member of the committee, told trustees. Flores said roughly three of those daily referrals are for mental-health reasons and said the center’s services are low cost and highly utilized.

Students said they had recently visited the state Capitol to advocate for continued funding and shared plans for campus health week in April and a second annual color run in May aimed at raising awareness about mental health. Veil Martinez, a senior, described the health fair and associated activities, including raffles, games with healthy snacks and partnerships with Polk County to raise awareness about substance abuse prevention.

Elisa Rodriguez, a senior who joined the youth advisory committee to participate in advocacy day, and other student members said the committee was formed in conjunction with the Central Health and Wellness Center, a certified school-based health center that prioritizes district students but also serves the community.

Board members thanked the students and invited them to leave early if they had homework; one board member noted the district would recognize classified employees later in the meeting. Students emphasized the impact of the health center on both physical and mental health at low out-of-pocket cost to families.