Health & Wellness

NYS Health Screening | Body Mass Index (BMI) Information | Immunization Requirements | Medications in School

The mission of the Edwards-Knox Central School wellness committee is to establish and maintain a school environment that promotes health and wellness for our students, staff, and the community.

NYS Health Screening

New York State schools are mandated by the Commissioner of Education to require each student enrolled in a public school to have a satisfactory health examination conducted by the student’s family physician, physician’s assistant or nurse practitioner upon the student’s entrance into Pre-Kindergarten or Kindergarten and grades 2, 4, 7, 9 and 11.

If your child will be entering a mandated grade in the fall, you are required to provide the district with a copy of a physical exam within 30 days of the start of the school year. This physical cannot be any more than 12 months old. If your child plans to play a sport, this exam will serve as a sport’s physical too. Below is a copy of the physical exam form to be completed by the student’s family physician, physician’s assistant or nurse practitioner.

• Required NYS Health Exam Form (via NYSED)
• Dental Health Form (via Google Drive)

Back to top

Body Mass Index (BMI) Information

As part of a required school health examination, a student is weighed, and his/her height is measured. These numbers are used to figure out the student’s body mass index or ‘BMI’. The BMI helps the doctor or nurse know if the student’s weight is in a healthy range or is too high or too low. Recent changes to the New York State Education Law require that BMI and weight status group be included as part of the student’s school health examination.

A sample of school districts will be selected to take part in a survey by the New York State Department of Health. If our school is selected to be part of the survey, we will be reporting to New York State Department of Health information about our students’ weight status groups. Only summary information is sent. No names and no information about individual students are sent. However, you may choose to have your child’s information excluded from this survey report.

The information sent to the New York State Department of Health will help health officials develop programs that make it easier for children to be healthier.

If you do not wish to have your child’s weight status group information included as part of the Health Department’s survey this year, please contact the nurse’s office.

Back to top

Immunization Requirements

Children attending daycare and pre-K to Grade 12 in New York State must receive all required doses of vaccines on the recommended schedule in order to attend or remain in school. This is true unless they have a valid medical exemption to immunization. This includes all public, private, and religious schools. A medical exemption is allowed when a child has a medical condition that prevents them from receiving a vaccine.

There are no non-medical exemptions to school vaccine requirements in NYS.

As a reminder, immunization requirements for students must be met for school attendance. A student may not be permitted to attend school without proof of required immunizations. There is a 14-day grace period following the first day of school to provide documentation of required immunizations. For those students who are transferring from out-of-state or from another country and can show a good faith effort to get the necessary evidence of immunization(s), there is a 30-day grace period. If a student is excluded from school, the building principal will submit their name to the local Department of Health.

View the list of Required Immunizations for 2024-2025.

Learn more about Immunization Requirements for NYS Schools.

Back to top

Medications in School

Students with short term or chronic health conditions often are well enough to attend school, but require medication during the school hours. Medications prescribed by a physician can be given at school; however there are certain state that we must abide by.

The New York State Education Department has sent us the procedures listed below that we legally must follow for both prescription and non-prescription drugs (over the counter medications such as Tylenol, cough syrup, cough drops, ointments, etc).

• Permission to Administer Multiple Medications Form (via GoogleDocs)

Requirements for medication in school:

1. The school nurse must have on file a written request from a physician in which she/he indicates how often to be given the dosage of the prescribed medication.
2. The school nurse must have on file a written request from the parent to administer the prescribed medication, which is to be updated each year.
3. All medications delivered to the school nurse must arrive in the original, sealed container. The label is for identification purposes only, and does not constitute a written order form the physician.
4. Medications should be delivered directly to the school by the parent or guardian.
5. Parents may request their pharmacists to provide two properly labeled containers of your prescription (one for school and one for at home use).

Back to top