About COSH

The AAP Council on School Health (COSH) is composed of trainees, pediatricians (Fellows of the American Academy of Pediatrics), and affiliate members representing various professional disciplines including, school nurses, school counselors, and other allied health professionals. The Council is led by a 15 member Executive Committee, which consists of AAP fellows elected by members of the Council and liaisons from several national organizations. 

What is School Health?

The Council on School Health (COSH) defines school health as an integration of wellness, safety, growth, learning, and development in the lives of school-aged children and adolescents within the context of their school, and with the coordinated alliance of the family and the medical home.

What does the Council on School Health Do?

To achieve our mission and vision, the AAP COSH provides:

• Advocacy – Informs national and state policy to ensure the health and safety of students and supports integrated, comprehensive, coordinated school health and other school-based health services
• Technical Assistance – Provides guidance to support implementation of school health policies and practices
• Education – Offers education focused on best practices for effective school health policies and programs
• Policy Development – Develops and disseminates policy based on best practices and evidence based research

The COSH works closely with various AAP departments, committees, sections, councils, chapters, national partners,and its members to provide these services.

Mission

The Council on School Health (COSH) is dedicated to optimizing the personal health, academic achievement, and life-long success of children and adolescents. The COSH seeks to promote sound school health policies and practices that ensure the health and safety of school-aged children and adolescents through policy, education ,and advocacy.

Vision

The vision of the COSH is for all children and adolescents to reach their full academic potential in a safe and healthy school environment. Pediatricians, other health care professionals, and the family will work in concert with schools to promote the physical, mental and social well-being of all children and adolescents.

COSH Principles

COSH affirms that excellence in school health has a school physician in every school district and a school nurse in every school.

COSH supports the concept of the ten components of the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child model promoted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an essential foundation of a sound school health services program.

COSH endorses the importance of prevention through early recognition, prompt intervention, and early education and/or remediation of potential problems that will interfere with life-long health or learning.

COSH acknowledges the necessity of ensuring full access to all school services in the least restrictive fashion for all children including those with special health care needs.

COSH promotes the use of school-based health centers to improve access to health care, either as an adjunct to the private medical home or as a primary medical home for those families that would lack such care in any other fashion, as promulgated by the School-Based Health Alliance. 

COSH maintains that schools serve a powerful role in shaping the health and well-being of young people and can provide a critical facility in which many agencies might work together to maintain student well-being including serving as an important public health intervention site, consistent with the American School Health Association.