Mission and Scope

The Journal of School Health (JOSH) communicates current scientific discoveries about how schools, educational systems, and communities can reliably maximize safety, health, learning, growth, and access to opportunity for all PreK-12^th grade students.  Further, JOSH advances knowledge about how to support and enhance the health, wellbeing, and expertise of every professional that serves young people in schools and across the broader educational system.  Finally, JOSH supports efforts to better understand the many impacts health promoting schools can make in the communities they serve and to equip advocates for children’s health with scientifically sound information they can use to promote school health around the world.

Submissions to JOSH encompass a wide variety of topics and subjects that frequently align with a coordinated school health approach.  For example, manuscripts often focus on areas such as: physical education and physical activity; nutrition environment and services; health education; social and emotional climate; physical environment; school-based or coordinated health services; counseling, psychological and social services; employee wellness and professional development; community involvement; and family engagement.  Additionally, JOSH encourages submissions that investigate how to effectively communicate and implement findings in terms of policy change, systems change, implementation science, and evaluation.

JOSH readership includes researchers, school administrators, health educators, nurses, physicians, dentists, psychologists, counselors, social workers, food services professionals and other professionals interested in the wellbeing of children and youth. These individuals work cooperatively with families and communities to achieve the common goal of providing the policies, programs, services, and environments necessary to promote the health of children and adolescents in schools.