Middle School YRBS

Learn how the Center for Excellence can support the implementation of the Middle school YRBS in your community. Here are some commonly asked questions about the Middle School YRBS.

Youth Risk Behavior Survey

In New Hampshire, the NH Department of Education (DOE) and the NH Department of Health & Human Services (NH DHHS) jointly administer the CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) to participating high schools.

While communities throughout NH have expressed the need to learn more about their middle school-aged children, at this time, the State of New Hampshire does not have the resources to provide the implementation, analysis, and report creation for the CDC’s Middle School YRBS. 

Middle School YRBS

A middle school version of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (MS YRBS) has been supported by the CDC since 1991 and is available to states and local schools for students in grades six through eight. Over the last 15+ years, many middle schools in New Hampshire have participated in the MS YRBS in order to inform community-based health initiatives. Center for Excellence staff have supported the administration, analysis and presentation of the MS YRBS data in partnership with school districts, prevention coalitions, and Drug-Free Community grantees. The Center has developed an electronic MS YRBS (based on the CDC Middle and High School YRBS Surveys) for use by NH middle schools. The survey meets the Drug-Free Community grantee reporting requirements and the exception to the NH state law prohibiting non-academic surveys.

The MS YRBS Questionnaire is developed by the Centers for Disease Control. The survey monitors health behaviors that contribute to health and social problems during adolescence and into adulthood. The survey monitors

  • behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence
  • social and emotional well-being
  • alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use
  • dietary behaviors
  • physical activity

The most recent version of the MS YRBS Questionnaire is available to review and is always posted publicly by school districts to inform parents.

How the Center Supports Your School

Once you have indicated that your school would like to conduct the MS YRBS, staff from the Center will contact you to discuss what you would like to accomplish with the survey. Up to five additional CDC-approved questions can be added to the survey questionnaire (see fee schedule below).

Center staff will guide your school through the steps necessary to implement the MS YRBS on your scheduled date.

After the survey has been completed, Center staff will analyze the data and create a user-friendly report customized for your school. Center staff will meet with you to go over the results and answer any questions you may have.

Middle School YRBS sample Report cover image

Service Level and Cost

The cost of implementing the core MS YRBS questionnaire, data analysis, and compilation of a single report is $6,000. While it is important to keep the core questions, there are some customization options. Please see the Service Levels and Cost sheet for more details about the fee schedule. Contact us with any questions you may have.