Ogden board hears SHARP survey results showing declines in teen substance use but rising mental-health concerns

Assistant Superintendent Chad Carpenter presented the Ogden City School District’s findings from the 2025 administration of the statewide SHARP (Student Health and Risk Prevention) survey, saying the anonymous, voluntary instrument helps districts identify risk and protective factors and shape programs.

"SHARP is confidential. It's completely anonymous," Carpenter said, describing the survey as a tool used by schools, health departments and community partners. He told the board that just over 78,000 students statewide participated in 2025 and that more than 1,500 Ogden students completed the survey, providing a meaningful local sample.

Carpenter highlighted areas of improvement: lifetime marijuana use in Ogden fell from 21.6% in 2021 to 13.1% in 2025, and vaping declined from about 28% to 16.5% over the same period. "That's an insight," Carpenter said, urging the board to use the data to guide prevention work and grant writing.

At the same time, Carpenter flagged mental-health indicators that remain concerning. He reported that 36% of Ogden students said they felt sad or hopeless for two or more weeks, and that suicide-planning rates in the district exceed statewide averages. "Suicide is on our students' minds," he said, urging the district to continue wraparound supports.

Health-department partners attending the meeting described how SHARP data helps guide local interventions. Bryce Sherwood, identified by the presenter as director of the community health division at the Weber-Morgan Health Department, said county funding has supported suicide-prevention trainer expansion and community coalitions. "Out of those funds, we took $20,000 of those and helped provide 26 new trainers through QPR," Sherwood said, citing a local use of settlement dollars tied to prevention efforts.

Board members pressed on how survey concerns translate to on-the-ground incidents. When a board member asked why worry about suicide is higher than the number of actual suicides, panelists replied that concern often reflects exposure, family or peer experiences and that trends can guide upstream prevention. Carpenter said hope squads and peer-support programs are seeing increased engagement and that the district is working to make data more accessible to parents through shorter, parent-facing reports.

Carpenter also called attention to digital-wellness issues identified by SHARP: 44% of students reported checking their phones every 15 minutes, and 58% said screen time affected sleep. He and partners stressed the difference between instructional screen use (authorized, curriculum-enabled time) and recreational social-media use.

Carpenter and health partners tied SHARP findings to concrete supports: targeted prevention programs, check-and-connect mentors funded through the eSIG grant with the Weber-Morgan Health Department, and expanded training for Hope Squad volunteers and school staff. "Virtually every grant that we write here in the school district is somehow using SHARP data," Carpenter said.

The board did not take formal action on the SHARP findings at the work session; Carpenter said a short (4-page) digest of SHARP results and links to the full report are available and that staff will continue local collaboration with health partners and family-facing outreach.

Next steps included making bite-sized parent reports more available, continuing coordination with Weber-Morgan Health Department programs, and using SHARP disaggregations to identify needs by school and ZIP code for targeted interventions.