Wellness of Students and Staff

Purpose

To reflect the Board of Trustees’ (the Board) mandated responsibility and expectation for providing a welcoming, inclusive, safe and healthy learning and working environment throughout the Division.

To assist students and staff in reaching their full potential by providing policy direction to create learning and working environments that supports a Division culture of wellness.

Positive and supportive social and physical learning and working environments address and respect the diversity within our student and staff population and are a key contributor to health for individuals. A wellness policy supports the Board in meeting its responsibility to establish and maintain governance and organizational structures that promote student and staff well-being and success, and monitor and evaluate their effectiveness.

Definitions

Definitions for the following terms and for terminology for all other policies related to AE.BP Welcoming, Inclusive, Safe and Healthy Learning and Working Environments are found in a Glossary of Terms (linked in References). 

The Alberta Education’s Framework for Kindergarten to Grade 12 Wellness Education, 2009, defines the five dimensions of wellness as:

• Emotional wellness
• Intellectual wellness
• Physical wellness
• Social wellness
• Spiritual wellness

These dimensions do not exist in isolation; it is the balance and interplay of these elements that constitute wellness. For example, all wellness curricula, including topics considered controversial or sensitive, such as those related to issues of sexual and mental health, are approached through the lens of this holistic definition of wellness.  This provides opportunities for students to accept and appreciate diversity and the uniqueness of self and others.

Policy

The Board recognizes that wellness is both an individual and collective responsibility. The Board believes that a state of personal wellness enables students and staff to reach their full potential and to contribute in an increasingly interdependent world. The Board acknowledges that only by working in partnership with students, staff, parents, community members, organizations and government can we promote and foster lifelong habits that support wellness.

The Board recognizes that it is subject to different legislative requirements when supporting student and staff wellness. As such, the Board embraces a Comprehensive School Health approach and is committed to ensuring that students and staff are provided with the supports they need to learn about, create and maintain a Division culture of wellness. The Board is further committed to providing safe, healthy learning and working environments through prevention of personal and occupational injuries and illnesses, and a proactive approach to creating positive and supportive environments that contribute to the well-being of self and others.

Comprehensive School Health (CSH) is an internationally recognized, evidence-based approach for building healthy school communities based on collaboration between home, school and community partners. A CSH approach to effective school health initiatives uses strategies from all four pillars of CSH as defined by the Joint Consortium for School Health:

• Social and Physical Environments
• Teaching and Learning
• Healthy School Policy
• Partnerships and Services include connections between schools, families, community. 

Expectations

1. Each school and central decision unit shall work towards creating and maintaining learning and working environments that support a Division culture of wellness using a Comprehensive School Health approach.
   
   
2. The Division shall:
   1. consider student and staff health and safety in the planning, implementation and evaluation of Division services;
   2. base supports for student and staff wellness on research, informed best practice and a balanced approach to delivery; and
   3. meet or exceed all legislated occupational health and safety (OHS) requirements through a Division OHS program.
3. School staff shall work collaboratively with Division services, parents, government agencies, and community partners to provide awareness of and access to available professional guidance and counselling services for students.
   
   
4. Curricular instruction and the development, implementation and monitoring of strategies to create and maintain a culture of wellness for students shall be in accordance with the Education Act, regulations and the Guide to Education.
   
   
5. Staff, and their dependents, shall be provided access to professional employee and family assistance services which offer assessment, referral, consultation, and counselling services. These services shall be confidential except where limited by law.
   
   
6. Assessment tools shall be identified to measure and monitor the effectiveness of the wellness strategies implemented by schools and central decision units for the purpose of local and Division-wide planning and delivery of supports.
   
   
7. The Superintendent of Schools shall implement this policy through the establishment of administrative regulations and the assignment of responsibilities as needed.

Accountability

The Administration reports on progress in relation to the supports provided to create a culture of wellness for students and staff through the Annual Report –Wellness of Students and Staff.

References