The 2.2 million people that work in child care and education settings across the U.S. shape the lives of our children and future generations. Yet, staff wellness of these employees is often overlooked.
Supporting our early childhood workforce while they shape the lives of our children is critical. Healthy teachers embody the healthy behaviors that we want to pass along to our children. NHSA has developed a staff wellness toolkit filled with resources and information to help Head Start programs and other organizations build effective programs to support the child care employees in their community.
Staff wellness programs reduce absenteeism, health care costs, and worker’s compensation claims and increase productivity and employee morale.
Knowing all systems and communities have different assets, resources, and policies, each part of this toolkit can be used as a standalone reference point for developing and implementing a unique intervention for staff wellness:
- Step 1: Seek Support from Program Leaders and the Community
- Step 2: Assign a Wellness Leader and Establish a Wellness Committee
- Step 3: Collect Data to Guide Efforts
- Step 4: Develop a Plan
- Step 5: Implement the Plan
- Step 6: Create a Supportive Environment
- Step 7: Evaluate Your Program