·  5th, 6th, 7th, 8th grades Posture Screenings       

·  5th & 7th grade Vision, 7th grade Hearing, SBIRT, Height/Weight at WEB DuBois Middle School

TO: Parents/Guardians of all DuBois Middle School Students

This notice is to make you aware of upcoming Health Screenings at WEB DuBois Middle School.

·  Posture Screenings are conducted on all middle school students by the PE teachers. A posture screening consists of a simple observation of the back. The screener looks for any unevenness of shoulders, hips, or one side of back. It is not a diagnostic service, but rather a program to identify young people who may need further evaluation. Early detection, particularly during a rapid period of growth, reduces postural defect through early intervention and proper treatment. If your child is currently under the care of a physician for scoliosis please send in a note and I can waive the exam.

Posture screenings will begin after the new year. You will be notified of the date on which your child will be screened one week prior, so appropriate clothing is worn or sent in from home.

·  Height and Weight Screenings are conducted on all 7th grade students. The measurements are supervised by nurses in the Health Office. Each student is screened individually. Non-identifying data is sent to the state.

·  Vision Screenings are conducted by nurses on all  5th AND  7th grade students in the Health Office. Students with corrective lenses should wear their contacts or bring eyeglasses to the screening. Please notify me with any concerns or current treatment that will help in this process.  If your child sees an eye doctor annually, please let me know and I will waive the exam.

·  Hearing Screenings: will be conducted by our SLP Christina Gordon and her SLP student intern, Karla Calvo on all 7th grade students.  If your child is under the care of a specialist for their hearing, please let me know, and I will waive the exam. 

·  SBIRT stands for Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment. SBIRT is a public health prevention model aimed at preventing/delaying the use of alcohol, marijuana and other substance use. Our primary goal is to have a preventive conversation with 7th grade students that will help to identify early risk behaviors and support healthy choices.

We utilize the most common substance use screening tool (CRAFFT) adopted by the MA Department of Public Health and used in collaboration with the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). It is a brief (5 minutes) interview-based screening consisting of a series of five questions developed to screen adolescents for risk of alcohol and other drug use simultaneously. The short, effective tool assesses whether a longer conversation about the context of use, frequency, or other risks and consequences, is needed.

These confidential screenings will be conducted by Ms., Hannah Gaschott, our health teacher in private one-on-one sessions. Students who are not using substances (the vast majority of students) will have their healthy choices reinforced by the screener. The screener will provide brief counseling to any student who reports using substances, or is at risk for future substance use. If needed, the student will be referred for further evaluation and support. This program focuses on harm prevention and does not generate disciplinary action – no results of the screening are included in your student’s school file or health record.

Height/Weight, Vision/Hearing, and SBIRT screenings will begin the week of October 6th and continue throughout the year until they are completed. 

Please note that physical exams are only required for 7th grade students at DuBois.  If your child gets them done annually, please send it along as many of these screenings are done by your child’s PCP and will not need to be repeated during their school day. 

As with any state-mandated health screening, you reserve the right to opt out of this process. If you have any questions or do not want your student to participate in one or all of the above screenings please call (413) 644-2300 ext 2309 or e-mail robyn.aloisi@bhrsd.org  by October 6th, 2025

Sincerely,

Jake McCandless                     Robyn Aloisi, RN, BSN

Principal                                    School Nurse