Health Promotion

 

  • Mission Statement

    HPP Mission
    The Health Promotion Program (HPP) primarily serves Weber State University (WSU), and other stakeholders (e.g., community partners, employers, etc.), by providing academic courses (a) to prepare students to work as health education specialists in health-related settings (e.g., hospitals, community health agencies, worksites, schools, etc.), and (b) to assist students to acquire knowledge, attitudes, and skills needed to adopt and maintain health behaviors.

    HPP Roles
    The academic courses for the Health Promotion Program include general education (e.g., healthy lifestyles) and varied content/topic courses (e.g., stress management, human sexuality, adolescent health issues, etc.) and, in particular, professional-preparation courses (e.g., program planning, research methods, methods in health promotion, etc.). The academic program offers a bachelor’s degree in health promotion (BS, Health Promotion), a minor in health promotion, and a teaching minor in health promotion, and an emphasis area to support the Bachelor of Integrated Studies (BIS) program.


    HPP Goal 1: Provide students with a foundation in all Eight Areas of Responsibility for Health Education Specialists.

    To advance the HPP mission and identified roles, the program has identified four overarching goals. The first is to provide students with academic training based on the standards of professional preparation and practice in health education/promotion forwarded by the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing (NCHEC). Through decades of research (e.g., Competencies Update Project, 2004; Health Education Job Analysis, 2010; Health Education Specialist Practice Analysis, 2015; Health Education Specialist Practice Analysis II, 2020)1 NCHEC has scientifically validated the "Eight Areas of Responsibility" for the contemporary practice of entry- and advanced-level health education specialists:

    • Responsibility 1: Student will assess needs, resources, and capacity for health education/promotion.
    • Responsibility 2: Students will plan health education/promotion.
    • Responsibility 3: Students will implement health education promotion.
    • Responsibility 4: Students will conduct evaluation and research related to health education/promotion
    • Responsibility 5: Students will advocate for health, health education, and/or the health profession.
    • Responsibility 6: Students will employ effective communication for health education/promotion.
    • Responsibility 7: Students will exhibit leadership and management for health.
    • Responsibility 8: Students will demonstrate ethics and professionalism.

    The Eight Areas of Responsibility promoted by NCHEC are deemed the essential elements for professional preparation (i.e., academic curriculum), credentialing (i.e., to become a Certified Health Education Specialist; CHES), and professional development of all health education specialists regardless of employment setting (e.g., health care, school, worksite, etc.). Consistent with NCHEC standards, the WSU Health Promotion Program has developed student-learning outcomes to prepare students/graduates to perform skills in each of the Eight Areas of Responsibility (see sections B and C).


    HPP Goal 2: Provide a Social Science General Education (SSGE) course (i.e., HLTH 1030, Healthy Lifestyles) for the University.

    The second goal of HPP is to provide WSU with a general education course, HLTH 1030 (Healthy Lifestyles), that counts as a social science elective for students. The standards for this course are prescribed by the University2 and include the following learning outcomes:

    1. Interactions between individuals and society: Students will describe how individuals and groups influence and are influenced by social contexts, institutions, physical environments and/or global process.
    2. Application of concepts, theories, and methods: Students will apply basic social science concepts, theories, and/or methods to a particular issue and identify factors that influence change.
    3. Diverse perspectives: Students will identify an argument about a social phenomenon and understand alternative explanations.


    HPP Goal 3: Provide students with knowledge and skills in the underlying science of human health and disease prevention.

    HPP provides topic-focused courses in multiple areas (e.g., stress management, mind/body wellness, consumer health, substance abuse, human sexuality, etc.), in general, (a) to allow students to explore more in-depth health issues that interest them and, more specifically, (b) to support degree requirements for several degrees (e.g., Health Promotion Major, Health Promotion Minor, Health Promotion Teaching Minor, BIS Emphasis in Health Promotion, etc.). In addition to declared majors and minors, HPP coursework is utilized by 14 other WSU programs such as Public Health, Public Relations, Nutrition Education, and Social Work. In particular, seven HPP courses are cross referenced with the Health Administrative Services (HAS) program to support students in this academic unit to gain necessary knowledge and skills for multiple HAS degrees and emphases. The expectations for what students should know and be able to do in these support courses are based on the framework established by the Joint Committee on National Health Education Standards (e.g., American Public Health Association, American School Health Association, American Association for Health Education)3 and include the following performance indicators:

    • Standard 1: Students will comprehend concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention to enhance health.
    • Standard 2: Students will analyze the influence of family, peers, culture, media, technology, and other factors on health behaviors.
    • Standard 3: Students will demonstrate the ability to access valid information, products, and services to enhance health.
    • Standard 4: Students will demonstrate the ability to use interpersonal communication skills to enhance health or reduce health risks.
    • Standard 5: Students will demonstrate the ability to use decision-making skills to enhance health.
    • Standard 6: Students will demonstrate the ability to use goal-setting skills to enhance health.
    • Standard 7: Students will demonstrate the ability to practice health-enhancing behaviors and avoid or reduce health risks.
    • Standard 8: Students will demonstrate the ability to advocate for personal, family, and community health.


    HPP Goal 4: Provide students with meaningful and mutually-beneficial engagements with community partners.

    The final goal for HPP is to provide students with supervised internship experiences that benefit both the student, in terms of professional growth and work experience, and the organization in regard to student assistance with key tasks and services. The chief student learning outcomes for this goal include the following:

    • 1. Hours: Students will complete a minimum of 60 internship hours per credit of HLTH 4860.
    • 2. Supervisor evaluation: students will be evaluated satisfactorily by their internship site supervisor.
    • 3. Project: Students will complete a project for the host agency that demonstrates at least three NCHEC competencies.
    • 4. Reflection: Students will complete structured reflection to summarize and evaluate their field experiences.
       

      1 A review of the research to establish the roles and competencies needed to practice health education can be found at https://www.nchec.org/responsibilities-and-competencies.
      2 The standards for general education courses in the social science breadth can be found at https://www.weber.edu/GenEd/default.html.
      3 The performance indicators for the National Health Education Standards can be found at https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/sher/standards.

This information is part of the cyclical program review process. Details such as mission statements, learning outcomes, etc., are updated as part of the biennial assessment reporting process, an integral component of program review.