Data Sharing Project Partner Spotlight Interview – School Health Alliance for Forsyth County

SHA ribbon cutting ceremony at Petree Elementary School. Photo courtesy of SHA.

Greetings from the Data Sharing Project and welcome back to our partner spotlight blog series! Today, we want to share a little bit about our newest Data Sharing Project partner, The School Health Alliance for Forsyth County.

The School Health Alliance for Forsyth County (SHA) is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization and a partner and supporting organization to the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School (WS/FCS) district. The SHA operates school-based health centers and programs in partnership with WS/FCS and other community health organizations to provide medical, mental health, and psychiatry services that promote the health and educational success of school-aged children and adolescents.

We sat down with their Executive Director, Dr. Stephanie Daniel, to chat about the work. We hope you enjoy learning a little bit more about what they are doing, and we are excited to keep you updated about our partnership over the next year!

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Who are you and what do you do at School Health Alliance?

I am Stephanie Daniel, and I am a clinical psychologist by training, and I serve as the Executive Director for the School Health Alliance for Forsyth County. I started with the School Health Alliance in 2006 as their lead evaluator, and then in 2011 our medical director asked if I would step into the role of Executive Director as she moved into phased retirement. She felt like I was a good fit for the position given my background with the evaluation role and my clinical training, but also, we were developing quite a few programs related to mental health, and developing strategies for increasing access to mental health services for our students in the school district – I have been in the role since then.

Can you share a little bit about what the School Health Alliance is and what you do in Forsyth County?

The School Health Alliance for Forsyth County provides health, nutrition, mental health, and psychiatry services to ANY student enrolled in our WS/FCS district, regardless of their ability to pay. SHA services are provided in school-based health clinics. The School-based health clinics are similar to a doctor’s office, but are clinic spaces located in our schools. School-based health clinic services include comprehensive well-child and adolescent exams, immunizations, diagnosis and treatment of illness or injury, COVID testing, management of chronic diseases such as asthma and diabetes, mental health assessment and therapy services, psychiatric evaluation and medication management, health education, nutrition education, and health promotion/disease prevention programs. With a focus on the whole child, the SHA school-based health clinics and programs keep children and adolescents in Forsyth County healthy, in school, and ready to learn.

How did you hear about the Data Sharing Project?

The SHA first learned about the Data Sharing Project through an Education Alliance meeting in Forsyth County. We followed up with the Data Sharing Project leadership, and were quickly able to learn more about the Project and to explore opportunities for partnership and collaboration.

What do you hope to accomplish through your partnership with the Data Sharing Project?

In addition to the goal of improved health and well-being for our students, we hope to learn more about how school-based health clinic services for our students directly impact their educational outcomes and successes. The Data Sharing Project provides us with access to educational outcomes for students such as grades, attendance, and disciplinary actions that we might not otherwise be able to access. This type of data and partnership can provide future direction and guidance for opportunities to tailor program and service development to target the needs of students.

What are you most excited about for this Collaboration?

The School Health Alliance for Forsyth County is the first health care organization to participate in the Data Sharing Project, so we are excited to be a partner in this work and to extend our longstanding partnership and collaboration with our school district in this way.

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Thank you for checking in for another DSP Partner spotlight! We are excited to keep you updated about the work our partners are up to. To schedule an appointment for a WS/FCS student or to learn more about how to enroll a student for services, please call 336-703-4273.

Translation services are available for all visit types. Los servicios de traducción están disponibles para todo tipo de visitas.

To learn more about the School Health Alliance for Forsyth County, please check out the SHA website at shaforsyth.com

If you are interested in learning more about the Data Sharing Project, or know of a program in Forsyth County that may benefit from a partnership with us, be sure to check out our website, and reach out to me, Christina Spence, at Chspence@wsfcs.k12.nc.us.

Until next time!

*Data Sharing Project does not release Personally Identifiable Information from student education records without parent consent and confirmation of program enrollment*