219139 Generation With Promise: Cultural competence between schools and community partners pursuing healthier schools and youth

Monday, November 8, 2010 : 11:15 AM - 11:30 AM

Nate McCaughtry, PhD , Department of Kinesiology, Health and Sport Studies, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI
Sara Flory, MS , Department of Kinesiology, Health and Sport Studies, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI
Jeffrey Martin, PhD , Department of Kinesiology, Health and Sport Studies, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI
Annie Murphy, PhD, RD , Healthy Kids Evaluation Services, Suttons Bay, MI
Katie Richards-Schuster, PhD , School of Social Work, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Barry Checkoway, PhD , School of Social Work, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Barbara Blum, MSW , Office of the Surgeon General, Michigan Department of Community Health, Detroit, MI
Kimberlydawn Wisdom, MD, MS , Office of the Surgeon General, Michigan Department of Community Health, Lansing, MI
Background: This is the fifth paper submitted for the symposium “Generation With Promise” and examines the cultural competence between schools and their diverse community partners working collaboratively toward school health reform.

Purpose: To examine issues of cultural competence between Coordinated School Health Teams (CSHTs) in underserved communities and their community partners as they completed Healthy School Action Tools (HSATs) to evaluate their schools' health and develop strategies for addressing health deficiencies.

Significance: Many suggest that schools could play significant roles in addressing youth obesity by joining with public health community partners to create healthier schools. However, to succeed, a better understanding of the cultural competence issues embedded in these partnerships is needed.

Methodology: This study used cultural competence theory and ethnographic methodology to examine the relational dynamics between school personnel and several community partners during multiple meetings of each CSHT at 14 middle schools through non-participant observation, interviews, and document collection. Data were analyzed using constant comparison and trustworthiness techniques included negative case analyses and member checks.

Results: Four key issues of cultural competence surfaced between these groups, including: (1) maximizing the diversity of school and community participants, (2) sensitivity to the contextual challenges of low-income urban schools, (3) careful use of language to avoid alienating stakeholders and school participants, (4) allowing the needs of schools and communities to drive school health initiatives.

Conclusions: Community partners can effectively support schools in facilitating youth and school health reform if they appreciate how issues of cultural competence affect their collaborations.

Learning Areas:
Diversity and culture

Learning Objectives:
Describe a three-component model of cultural competence. Identify four strategies that community partners can execute to collaborate with schools in culturally competent ways to facilitate youth and school health.

Keywords: Cultural Competency, School Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the primary investigator on the Generation With Promise Grant Project.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3152.0: A generation with promise: School and student health transformation