The School Health Liaison Program is a program of the Pinal County Public Health Services District and has been made possible by the Pinal County Board of Supervisors’ approval of the creation of a Public Health District.  The program is funded by the Public Health District and the ADHS Bureau of Tobacco and Chronic Disease.  The goals of the program are to:

• Improve the efficiency and span of Public Health services available to Pinal County residents, specifically school-aged children and their families;
• Help school districts maintain optimal health and safety conditions for students; and
• Provide a reliable “point person” for school administrators to obtain available services to meet their site’s public health needs.

A unique aspect of the School Health Liaison Program is that school staff determine health education priorities based upon the Public Health needs of their school.  In addition to services that are offered universally, such as health articles for parent newsletters, links to Public Health programs, and information about communicable diseases, the Program tailors Public Health education to meet the needs of the school.  As the graph below indicates, hygiene as a disease preventative measure was a high priority among most schools. 

“Our partnership is very successful.  The programs offered are what the students need.  If we have questions or concerns, Pinal County Public Health Services is there to help us.  We are deeply Grateful.”
-Assistant Superintendent, Florence Unified School District

  “I would define the School Health Liaison partnership in our school as a success.  There was great partnership and interaction that took place, and the students had and excellent opportunity to interact and gain knowledge on important topics…Thank you for creating this important opportunity for the students of our school community.”
-Administrator, JO Combs Middle School

“The Health Liaison is a valuable asset to our school curriculum and provides lessons (and info) that would otherwise not be taught to our students.”
-Administrator, Ray Elementary School

Participating Schools are chosen on a first-come, first-served basis.  The following school districts were assigned School Health Liaisons during 2010-2011:

• Casa Grande Elementary School District: Palo Verde Elementary, Saguaro Elementary, Cactus Middle School, Villago Middle School and Casa Grande Middle School.
• Coolidge Unified School District: West Elementary, Heartland Ranch Elementary, Hohokam Middle School, Mountain Vista Middle School, and San Tan Heights Elementary School.
• Florence Unified School District: Florence K-8 School, Skyline (K-8), Florence High School, Walker Butte (K-8), and Magma Ranch (K-8).
• JO Combs School District: Ranch Elementary, Simonton Elementary, Ellsworth Elementary, Harmon Elementary, JO Combs Middle/High School.
• Juvenile Justice Center.
• Mammoth/San Manuel Unified School District: San Manuel Junior/Senior High, Mammoth Elementary STEM, and First Avenue Primary.
• Maricopa Unified School District: Butterfield Elementary, Maricopa Wells Middle School, Saddleback Elementary, Desert Wind Middle School and Maricopa High School.
• Ray Unified School District: Ray Primary School and Ray Elementary.