California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS)

The CHKS is a modular, anonymous assessment recommended for students age 10 and above. It is focused on the five most important areas for guiding school and student improvement:

• student connectedness, learning engagement/motivation, and attendance;
• school climate, culture, and conditions;
• school safety, including violence perpetration and victimization/bullying;
• physical and mental well-being and social-emotional learning; and
• student supports, including resilience-promoting developmental factors (caring relationships, high expectations, and meaningful participation).

The CHKS includes a range of questions to obtain student perceptions on health-related behaviors including: 

• • Alcohol and other drug use
  • Tobacco use
  • Violence and school safety
  • Physical and nutritional habits
  • Youth resilience (positive self-perception and avoidance skills)

The California Department of Education (CDE) recommends that schools administer the CHKS every two years to provide data on student health risks and resilience. For school districts currently receiving the Tobacco Use Prevention Education (TUPE) grant, of which the GUSD is one, administration of the CHKS is required. This online survey will be given to GUSD students in Grades 6, 7, 9 and 11 in the Fall of 2022. The last CHKS administration in the district was in the Fall of 2020. Students are given the appropriate level Core Module of key questions to ensure comparable data across all schools.

The CHKS takes approximately one period to complete. The results of the survey benefit the District by providing information and data to secure grant funding, guide and evaluate school violence and substance abuse prevention programs, and update site School Safety Plans and the District's annual Safe Schools Report.

Background of CHKS:

As a federal mandate to meet the Obama administration’s blueprint for proposed reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) released by the U.S. Department of Education in March 2010, all California schools are required to administer the CHKS every two years to provide data on student health risks and resilience. The CHKS includes a range of questions to obtain student perceptions on health-related behaviors such as alcohol, tobacco, drug use, and violence.

Parent Consent for CHKS
For 6^th grade students in the elementary and middle schools, parent permission is required, meaning that parents must sign a consent form indicating whether or not their child have their permission to take the survey. For students in Grades 7, 9 and 11, permission is passive, which means all students can take the survey unless parents opt their students out.

Copies of the CHKS questionnaire are made available at each school and on the District website for parent review before the survey is given.

California School Staff Survey (CSSS)

In addition to the CHKS, GUSD school staff will participate in the CSSS. This online staff survey assesses the perceptions and experiences of K-12 teachers, administrators, and other school personnel and:

• provides comparison data to the questions and constructs asked students in the CHKS core.
• addresses the working environment and conditions, including staff relationships, organizational expectations and norms, and meaningful participation in decisions;
• encapsulates the scope and nature of existing student supports, programs, and services (e.g., discipline, counseling, health, and prevention); and
• assesses parent supports and involvement.

Information from the results of the CHKS and CSSS allows the district and school personnel to:

• • Evaluate both student learning and staff working conditions (K-12)
  • Compare student self-report data with staff and parent perceptions
  • Update site School Safety Plans and the Annual District Safe Schools Report
  • Guide and evaluate school violence and substance abuse prevention programs
  • Evaluate the Safe Schools Healthy Students program
  • Apply for various grants including:
    • Tobacco Use Prevention Education (TUPE)
    • Drug and Other Substance Abuse Prevention
    • Safe and Drug Free Schools and Communities
    • School Safety and Violence Prevention 

English - Elementary School Parent Consent Form

English - Middle School Parent Consent Form

English - High School Parent Consent Form