Dear Parent or Guardian,
This fall our students will take the Healthy Kids Colorado Survey (HKCS) on November 5th, an important survey about student health. The survey asks students about health topics including unintentional injuries and violence; mental health; school safety; substance use; physical activity and nutrition; sexual behavior (optional); and risk and protective factors.
Your child is in a class that has been chosen to take this anonymous survey. Students do not have to take the survey. The survey takes no longer than one class period to complete. The survey process protects your student’s privacy, and no information is collected that can identify an individual student. Only your child will know how they answer. Students do not get school credit for taking the survey, and there is no penalty for not taking the survey. The survey results will help your school, community groups, and state health agencies to plan programs and services for youth. The survey is supported by the Colorado Departments of Public Health & Environment, Education, Public Safety, the Behavioral Health Administration, and the Attorney General’s Office, and is administered by the Colorado School of Public Health every other year. This project has been approved by your school district and the Colorado Multiple Institutional Review Board (COMIRB).
Students receive the survey during class time and are instructed to answer the questions or skip any question they don’t understand or don’t feel comfortable answering. Students who are not completing the survey do other schoolwork during the survey time. We encourage you to discuss the survey with your child and share your views on their choice to participate. For more information about the study, please visit our website healthykidscolo.org or call the Healthy Kids Colorado Survey Director, Dr. Ashley Brooks-Russell, at 303-724-8437. For questions regarding IRB approval, please contact COMIRB at 303- 724-1055. For questions regarding Denver Public Schools Research Review Board approval, please contact rrb@dpsk12.net.
Parents: please be aware that under the Protection of Pupil Rights Act, you have the right to review a copy of the questions asked of or materials that will be used with your students. To view a copy of your school district’s survey, please visit:
Survey Participation Benefits and Risks: While there are no direct benefits to student participants, the data collected will allow for continued understanding of health-related behaviors, attitudes and beliefs among Colorado youth, determine effectiveness of health programs, and highlight new areas needing attention. This research involves no risk to participants; it is anonymous.
Data Storage and Maintenance: Student anonymity is maintained during data collection through detailed instructions to local survey administrators and teachers, the anonymous online survey format, and through the implementation of practices to protect student confidentiality by the survey administrators and classroom proctors. We export all data from the online survey platform to perform analysis. No analysis is conducted in Qualtrics. Raw, anonymous data is then stored on secure servers. Aggregates of regional and statewide data will be available at Healthykidscolo.org and Denver Public Schools will retain anonymous, de-identified student level data.
Please contact the survey coordinator, Jessica Rapp at Jessica_Rapp@dpsk12.net or 720-424-2516 within the next two weeks if you do NOT want your child to participate. If you wish to give your child permission to participate, no action is needed at this time.