Local Health Department Program is One of 21 Nationwide to Receive NACCHO’s
“Model Practice Award” in 2020
CROOK COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT was honored with the 2020 Model Practice Award by
the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO). The award celebrates local
health departments for developing programs that demonstrate exemplary and replicable best practices
in response to a critical local public health need. Students for Public Health Policy and Systems Change
was one of 21 local health department programs to receive NACCHO’s prestigious Model Practice
Award.
The program is an initiative to effectively engage young people in public health efforts and
includes a variety of opportunities for student involvement. Examples include middle and high school-
aged students leading projects through Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) chapters at their
schools to promote health, safety, and well-being among their peers. Also, high school students engage
in paid and unpaid internships and staff positions with the health department. Supporting civic
engagement and health advocacy are core goals of the project.
“We are proud to receive NACCHO’s Model Practice Award. The award is evidence of our
commitment to developing responsive and innovative public health programs that improve the health of
local residents,” said Katie Plumb, Deputy Director at Crook County Health Department.
Since 2003, NACCHO’s Model Practice Awards have honored programs, resources, and tools that
demonstrate how local health departments and their community partners can effectively collaborate to
address local public health challenges. Each innovative project receiving the Model Practice Award was
peer-reviewed and selected from a competitive group of over 100 applicants.
Students for Public Health Policy and Systems Change is now part of an online, searchable
database of successful public health practices in areas that range from immunization and maternal and
child health, to infectious diseases and emergency preparedness. The NACCHO Model Practice database
allows local health departments, public health partners, and other important stakeholders to learn
about the good work being done by local health departments across the country. The database also
provides users an opportunity to learn from best practices and what resources are needed to implement
comparable programs in other jurisdictions that produce results.
Read more about these award-winning programs at:
https://application.naccho.org/Public/Applications/Search.
