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Survey finds frequent social-media use and pockets of substance use; district plans targeted supports
Summary
The district presented Youth Risk Behavior Survey results showing many students use social media multiple times a day, most report seven or more hours of sleep, and lifetime substance-use responses varied; staff said the data will inform targeted supports and that anonymity limits the survey's diagnostic precision.
District staff presented the Youth Risk Behavior Survey results for middle and high school students and outlined follow-up steps at the Oct. 7 school committee meeting.
Samantha Mandara, who led the presentation, said most high‑school students reported getting seven or more hours of sleep, and a sizeable share reported daily or multiple-times‑a‑day social-media use. Lifetime measures of substance use included 45% of high‑school respondents saying they had tried alcohol at least once and 24.4% reporting having tried marijuana at least once. E‑cigarette and cigarette lifetime-use numbers were lower than some past years but still present.
Mandara cautioned that the survey is anonymous and asked during classroom blocks, which affects response rates and that some items — such as questions about use of prescription drugs without a doctor's instruction — may be misinterpreted by respondents. "We don't know who that is," she said of students reporting short sleep or other risk items, "so we use the information to inform how we move forward."
Committee members and administrators highlighted mental‑health indicators. A minority of students reported frequent poor mental health in the previous 30 days; staff said the results will guide counseling outreach, screening and interventions. The district plans to use the data to refine MTSS (multi‑tiered system of support) screening and to develop targeted interventions and family outreach.
Mandara and administrators said they have not yet broadly released results to students and plan to be intentional about how, when and with what supports results are shared. The district will use the YRBS data alongside local indicators and other information to design follow-up steps, including parent education events and counseling outreach.
The committee discussed patterns by grade and time of administration and asked whether different administration timing could improve high‑school participation rates; staff said UBlock/class block administration is the most feasible approach to avoid interrupting instruction.
