While maintaining healthy habits is not as easy as clicking your heels together, students and staff at Unaka High School did have a chance on Monday to follow the yellow brick road to better health.
Students in the health sciences, computer applications and food and nutrition classes hosted a health fair for their fellow students and the school staff on Monday. A pathway of yellow squares led attendees through the gymnasium to numerous booths covering a variety of health topics such as healthy eating, saying no to drugs, sexual health, cardiovascular health, saying no to tobacco use and the dangers of steroids.
Keeping with the event’s Wizard of Oz theme, student workers dressed as characters from the popular movie – such as Dorothy, the Tin Man and the Wicked Witch of the West – mingled with visitors.
“I decided that giving it a theme would make the students more interested,” health sciences teacher Kayla Clawson said.
Holding a health or wellness fair is one part of the state required curriculum for the health occupations sciences class, Clawson said. The event on Monday was the first time the school hosted the event on their own.
“In the past ETSU has put one on,” Clawson said. “This one is being run by our own students at Unaka.”
The students not only rose to the challenge of creating their own health fair, Clawson said they exceeded expectations.
“Some of our kids have been really innovative,” she said. “My kids have worked really hard. I am proud of them.”
In addition to the booths and activities set up by the students, the event also featured some events from the community including the Carter County Sheriff’s Department, Elizabethton Fire Department, Marsh Regional Blood Center, Mountain States Health Alliance and Blood Assurance. In addition to providing health information, some booths provided other health-related services such as blood pressure checks, blood typing and health snacks.
“It is important to do this for our students so they can learn to live a healthier lifestyle,” Clawson said.
This year the event was only open to students and staff of Unaka High School as well as the families of the students who put the health fair together. In the future, Clawson hopes to expand the event to make it open to everyone in the community.
“We want to thank everyone who donated time and door prizes to help make this a success,” Clawson said.