Rural Schools and Health – Resources

Child Nutrition Program Operations During the COVID-19 Pandemic, March through September 2020: School Meals Operations Study, Year 1 Report (Final)
Describes trends in Child Nutrition (CN) Program participation during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, from March through September 2020. Presents data on the number of meals served, operational and financial challenges state agencies and local program operators experienced during the pandemic, and the use of COVID-19 Child Nutrition nationwide waivers. Includes information on challenges rural program operators faced.
Additional links: Report Summary
Date: 05/2023
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
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Disparities in Implementing COVID-19 Prevention Strategies in Public Schools, United States, 2021–22 School Year
Reports on COVID-19 prevention strategies early in the 2021-22 school year and describes disparities in implementing strategies by school characteristics. Appendix includes data on specific strategies related to mask wearing and ventilation for city, suburban, town, and rural schools.
Additional links: Appendix
Author(s): Sanjana Pampati, Catherine N. Rasberry, Zach Timpe, et al.
Citation: Emerging Infectious Diseases, 29(5), 937-944
Date: 05/2023
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Ventilation Improvements Among K–12 Public School Districts — United States, August–December 2022
Reports on K-12 public school ventilation improvements to prevent COVID-19 transmission, including replacing or upgrading ventilation systems, installing filtration systems, installing ultraviolet germicidal irradiation devices, and improving airflow. Includes data for city, suburb, town, and rural locations.
Author(s): Miguella Mark-Carew, Gloria Kang, Sanjana Pampati, et al.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 72(14), 372-376
Date: 04/2023
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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A Rural Therapist and School Program Address Teen Mental Health
Provides an overview of the behavioral health needs of rural teens. Features a rural West Virginia trauma therapist, as well as a rural Wisconsin school program that incorporates teenagers' strengths and interests and connects them with trusted adults in order to improve their mental health.
Author(s): Allee Mead
Citation: Rural Monitor
Date: 01/2023
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Information Hub
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School-Based Telehealth Playbook
Guides health centers through the design, implementation, and operation of a telehealth program that meets the needs of children and adolescents. Covers assessing needs and readiness, program models, business models, technology and equipment, program evaluation, partnerships, and implementation. Highlights examples from rural areas throughout.
Date: 2023
Sponsoring organization: School-Based Health Alliance
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No Kid Hungry 2023 Summer Meals Outreach Toolkit
A toolkit that provides sample communications in both English and Spanish for social media, flyers, postcards, and more to spread awareness about summer meal programs. Includes information on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) implementation guidance for non-congregate meal service in rural areas.
Date: 2023
Sponsoring organization: No Kid Hungry
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Closing the Opportunity Gap for Young Children
Discusses the factors that cause inequities and limited access to resources for young children, such as poverty, food insecurity, abuse and violence, lack of social and emotional safety, inadequate healthcare and schooling, and more. Discusses policy and practices aimed at reducing opportunity gaps, with a focus on historically disadvantaged populations, including those in rural areas.
Additional links: Read Online
Author(s): Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education
Date: 2023
Sponsoring organization: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Common Problems, Common Solutions: Looking Across Sectors at Strategies for Supporting Rural Youth and Families Tool-Kit
Provides an overview of barriers faced by rural communities in supporting youth and families, and innovative strategies to improve outcomes for youth, families, and communities. Informed by interviews and listening sessions with practitioners and leaders working in rural areas across the United States.
Author(s): Lisa Pilnik, Christine Humowitz
Date: 2023
Sponsoring organizations: Georgetown University Center for Juvenile Justice Reform, U.S. Department of Justice
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Bringing Community Voice into Cross-Sector Data Sharing: Addressing the Health Needs of Children and Youth in Rural South Carolina
A case study that discusses collaboration across multiple organizations involved with the Learning and Action in Policy and Partnerships (LAPP) initiative to improve data sharing around socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity disparities in youth living in rural South Carolina. Discusses how improved data sharing and collaboration can help rural schools and community leaders address students' physical and mental health needs.
Date: 11/2022
Sponsoring organizations: Center for Health Care Strategies, Data Across Sectors for Health
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Measuring the Effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Diné and White Mountain Apache School Personnel, Families, and Students: Protocol for a Prospective Longitudinal Cohort Study
Examines the protocol for the "Project SafeSchools" (PSS) study, which aims to analyze barriers, facilitators, and overall educational, social-emotional, and health impacts of reopening schools on the Diné Nation and the White Mountain Apache Tribal lands after COVID-19 closures. Discusses recruitment, participatory research model, community engagement, and data collection methods.
Author(s): Joshuaa D. Allison-Burbank, Allison Ingalls, Paul Rebman, et al.
Citation: BMC Public Health, 22, 1481
Date: 08/2022
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