Contribution of Elev8 to school health education in New Mexico: A qualitative study

The contribution of School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) to a coordinated school health program has been documented. Elev8 is a national effort by the Atlantic Philanthropies to promote student success through a full service community school environment. SBHCs are a key component of Elev8. New Mexico (NM) is one of the Elev8 implementation sites, and includes five middle schools serving 2,500 students. This paper reports on a qualitative study that assessed the contribution of Elev8 NM SBHCs to school health education. Data were collected through unobtrusive observations; 17 semi-structured interviews; and review of documents. Triangulation approaches included combination of two or more data sources; involvement of multiple investigators; and mixed methodological approaches. Results indicate that all sites developed the infrastructure needed to become a full-service community school and provided behavioral health and some primary care to students. However, participation in and contribution to health environment and curriculum was very limited. This was due to lack of trained health educators and collaborative planning and cooperation between school administrators/staff and SBHC providers. Elev8 NM SBHCs constitute a unique opportunity to contribute to coordinated school health. This study recommends the development of partnerships with public health/health education programs.