FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

ANA M. VIAMONTE-ROS, M.D., M.P.H

STATE SURGEON GENERAL

INTERAGENCY MEMORANDUM

DR. ERIC J. SMITH

Commissioner of Education

DATE:

January 14, 2008

TO:

County Health Department Directors/Administrators

District

School

Superintendents

FROM:

Ana M. Viamonte-Ros, M.D., M.P.H.

State Surgeon General, Department of Health

Eric J. Smith, PhD

Commissioner, Florida Department of Education

SUBJECT:

2008 Florida Youth Survey (FYS)

ACTION

REQUIRED:

Designate staff and plan for survey

Effective Immediately

The Florida Department of Health is preparing to conduct the ninth edition of the highly

successful Florida Youth Survey (FYS). This annual cooperative effort is designed to reduce

the survey burden on Florida’s public middle and high schools (by combining surveys into a

single survey administration), to increase the usefulness of collected data for the state, and to

meet the program planning and evaluation needs of diverse programs such as Safe and Drug-

Free Schools, the Florida Tobacco Control Program, and the Coordinated School Health

Program. This survey effort is co-sponsored by Florida’s Departments of Education, Health,

Children and Families, Juvenile Justice, and the Governor’s Office of Drug Control.

The specific date for conducting the survey will be determined at the local level, but must occur

during the

five-week survey period beginning March 31, 2008, and ending on May 2, 2008

.

There will be two surveys, the

Florida Youth Tobacco Survey

(FYTS) and the

Florida Youth

Substance Abuse Survey

(FYSAS) given to randomly selected students in grades 6-12. It is

critical to national, state, and local program planning and evaluation that your selected schools

and students participate in this important survey.

The

Florida Youth Tobacco Survey

is used to evaluate the impact of Florida’s innovative

program to prevent and reduce youth tobacco use. The

Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey

provides important information on alcohol and other drug use, attitudes, and behaviors; risk and

protective factors; and the community context that influences these variables. Each of the

survey instruments is either similar or identical to the surveys administered in the past.

---

District School Superintendents

County Health Department Directors/Administrators

Page 2

It is important that school district and county health department personnel cooperate and

collaborate to encourage maximum participation by the approximately 775 schools selected to

participate throughout the state. Actual administration of the survey to individual schools and

classes will be arranged at the local level. In each school that is selected, a small number of

classes will be chosen to participate. Within selected classrooms, students will randomly

receive only one of the survey instruments, but both will have the same cover. Each student will

complete only one survey. The survey will take no more than one class period to complete.

Anonymity will be protected, and students do not have to respond to any questions they are not

comfortable answering.

Technical assistance and details about the administration of the survey will be provided to

county health department and school district staff during a one-day training and orientation. The

training sessions are tentatively scheduled for February 19, 2008, in Tallahassee; February 20,

2008, in Orlando; and February 22, 2008, in Miami. One coordinator from the school district

and one coordinator from the county health department should attend the training. These

coordinators will work together to carry out the survey effort in their county. Those who attend

the training should be the ones that will actually carry out the survey coordination.

Please designate a person from your agency to serve as coordinator on the enclosed

Coordinator Designation Form and return it by fax or e-mail by January 21, 2008.

Detaile

d

information about the training will be sent to the designees once a completed Coordinator

Designation Form has been received.

School districts should be sure to have a student privacy policy in place as required by changes

to the

General Educational Provisions

of the

No Child Left Behind Act

(Section 1061, Title X,

Part F of P.L. 107-110).

We look forward to working with and assisting you in implementing the 2008 Florida Youth

Survey. If you have any questions about the survey process, please contact Ms. Jamie Weitz,

Florida Youth Survey Coordinator at the Department of Health, at (850) 245-4444, Ext. 2424, or

via e-mail at jamie_weitz@doh.state.fl.us.

AVR/EJS/jrw

Attachment(s)

cc:

?

County Health Departments: School Health Coordinators

County Health Departments: Tobacco Prevention Specialists

School District Contacts: Safe and Drug-Free Schools Coordinators

School District Contacts: Coordinated School Health Coordinators

School District Contacts: Directors of Student Services

---

 

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

2008 FLORIDA YOUTH SURVEY

Coordinator Designation Form

PLEASE RETURN BY JANUARY 25

th

VIA FAX OR E-MAIL

To:

?

Jamie

Weitz

FAX:

850-922-9299

E-MAIL: jamie_weitz@doh.state.fl.us

The following person is designated to serve as coordinator from our county/district for the 2008

?

Florida Youth Survey Effort:

?

NAME:________________________________________________________

?

SHIPPING ADDRESS (to receive overnight mail & deliveries):

?

PHONE: (______)___________________ FAX: (______)____________________

E-mail: _____________________________________________________________

County:

_____________________________________________________________

Representing: Check One (

√

):

•

 

School District Coordinator: _____

•

 

County Health Department: _____

Questions regarding FYS coordinator designation

Contact Jamie Weitz at 850-245-4444, Ext. 2424, or by e-mail at jamie_weitz@doh.state.fl.us.

_____ Orlando Training (February 20)