PolicyLab

There’s no doubt that a student’s health can influence their academic achievement. As students around the country are starting a new school year, we thought it would be a good time to examine this relationship and consider ways that public systems can better work together to support both students’ health and education. We invite you to read and watch the materials that are part of our PolicyLab Goes Back to School series:

• A blog post from our Ariel Williamson, PhD, on how adequate sleep translates to academic success.
• A Q&A with Philadelphia’s Commissioner of Parks and Recreation Kathryn Ott Lovell on why cities should invest in parks and safe recreation and how her department is directly contributing to the health of our city’s youth.
• A blog post from PolicyLab Faculty Scholar Kristen Feemster, MD, MPH, MSHP, on her research around vaccination requirements and rates at our nation’s universities.
• A video from PolicyLab researchers and former sex educators Alanna Butler, MPH, and Ava Skolnik, MPH, about why comprehensive sex education matters for teens and how different sex education can look between states.