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News — All middle schools and high schools in Illinois are invited to participate in the 2024  (IYS), a self-report online survey that assesses a variety of health and social indicators, including drug use and perceptions, violence, bullying, depression, school climate, nutrition, and fitness. Data is being collected during the Spring semester.

Administered by the  (CPRD) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the IYS uses the anonymous data to produce school, district, community, county, and statewide reports. These reports aid administrators in applying for grants, implementing comprehensive prevention program planning, conducting evaluations across all geographic areas of the state.  can be viewed online. “This non-partisan survey is so important, because it helps us prove that state-funded prevention services are, in fact, keeping 8^th graders off drugs,” said Dr. Doug Smith, the study’s principal investigator.”

There are separate versions for  and  students. It takes about one class period to administer and is available in both English and Spanish. All reports are available free of charge to principals at participating schools roughly 4 to 6 weeks after survey administration. By law, participation in the IYS is also tracked as part of the Illinois Report Card, the official source of information on the academic performance and environments of public schools and school districts across the state. This survey is not related to the recent Wellness Checks in Schools Program Act.

Dr. Smith also noted there was some confusion about the survey.  “Some folks think it’s part of a new law requiring mental health screening in schools. Others wondered if we were selling data to third parties. And, some question whether kids are honest on this anonymous survey. It is not a mental health screening, we don’t profit from any child’s data, and a very small percentage of youth are not forthcoming,” said Smith. “What it does do is help us make good policy decisions that help keep kids off drugs.  For example, we used IYS data to show that so far Illinois’ cannabis laws were not increasing cannabis use among Illinois youth, and also studied how the Opioid crisis was affecting youth” Smith elaborated.   

School administrators can register  or by phone with an IYS coordinator at 888-333-5612. Registration is open until April 30, 2024.

 on the IYS is available on the CPRD website or by calling the IYS team at 217-333-3231 or toll-free at 888-333-5612 or by email at [email protected].