ASHA Research and Publications Committee Chairs Profile

Elizabeth Whitney

Julius West Middle School, Health Educator

Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

Area of Expertise/WSCC Component: Health Education

Elizabeth Whitney will begin her first year as a middle school health education teacher in Montgomery County, MD. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Whitney was at the University of Kentucky where she was a health education teacher educator and health promotion faculty. She is looking forward this career pivot such that she will have the opportunity to directly impact the lives of youth and the local school community by bringing her prior knowledge, resources, skills, and abilities to her new position.

September 22

Webinar: Engaging Youth in a Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program

A Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) is the evidence-based framework that provides an approach to help schools and communities identify all opportunities before, during, and after school for students to be physically active. Students are at the center of the CSPAP, as its primary goal is to enable students to achieve 60 minutes of daily physical activity. But, how often are youth engaged in shaping these opportunities to be physically active? Oftentimes, youth are seen as recipients of a CSPAP but are not engaged in shaping the planning, implementation, and evaluation of this framework. Springboard to Active Schools, an initiative of the National Network of Public Health Institutes and Health Resources in Actions, will lead participants through activities to explore youth engagement principles and how to apply them to the development, implementation, and evaluation of a CSPAP in a school.