Youth Spotlight: Diego Macias, Manuel Mena and Juan Alvarez

By Jo Pennock: Intervention and Prevention Programs Manager

This winter, thousands of students in Eagle County and across Colorado took part in the biennial Healthy Kids Colorado Survey. If you take a look at the website of Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), they say that “the Healthy Kids Colorado Survey (HKCS) is the state’s most comprehensive survey on the health and well-being of young people. The purpose of this survey is to better understand youth health and the factors that help young people make healthy choices.”

Understanding the lives of young people is exactly why Mountain Youth, along with dozens of volunteers from across the county, spent hundreds of hours ensuring we collected the best data possible in most of our public and charter schools. With approximately 2,800 students surveyed, Eagle County is one of the top contributors to HKCS’s data.

While helping to administer the survey  at Red Canyon High School, I was able to speak with some students who took the survey, some for the second and third time over the course of their school careers. Diego Macias, a junior at RCHS, shared that “it was cool [to take the survey]. Some of the questions were a little personal.” He admitted that he was nervous to answer truthfully, even though he knew the survey was anonymous and his answers could not be traced back to him.

When I asked if he had ever looked at the survey results, he didn’t realize that was an option. In fact, the survey results for all of Colorado are available on the CDPHE website, and more specific results for the Eagle River Valley can be found on Mountain Youth’s website.

Later in the day, I spoke with Juan Alvarez, a senior at RCHS and a soccer coach for YouthPower365. When I asked him what it was like to take the survey, he shared, “I don’t really expect my experience at school to get better because it’s already not bad. I’ve never been bullied or anything like that. We live in a pretty small community, we’re all pretty safe…. But I can see the benefit to other schools, like in Denver, where that might not be the case. Which is good because we want to help improve others… Knowing that it’s helping others is pretty lit.”

Later in the interview, Juan shared more about how and why he too loves working with kids. “It’s cool because you get to bond with kids. I help them understand the reality of how much [soccer] helps keep your mind from drifting on to other things. I’ve had a lot of kids open up to me because I won’t criticize them, and I help them grow from there.”

If you read further on the CDPHE website, it goes on to say:

“The HKCS is widely used by schools, districts, and communities in their efforts to grow the healthiest youth in the country. The results of the survey can help:

• Inform the creation of programming to support student success.

• Provide direction for schools and communities to address health issues.

• Share relevant topics with parents to help them talk to their children about their health and well-being.

• Secure youth health program funding for schools, community organizations, and local and state government agencies.”

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I asked Juan if he knew that organizations across the county like Mountain Youth, SpeakUp ReachOut, and YouthPower365 use survey data to improve their programs — including the one he works for — and to apply for funding to keep them going. He did not. What he, and many others, may also not realize is that he represents one of the largest protective factors a child can have in their life: a safe adult or mentor. Recent prevention science, supported by data like that collected by HKCS, has shown that a high-quality youth–mentor relationship is significantly associated with positive social, academic, and health-related behaviors.

This is why projects like the Healthy Kids Colorado Survey are so important. They help us track trends among young people over time, identify gaps, and give schools, local governments, and organizations insight into the direction their programs should take. Just as importantly, they give the very people we’re trying to support a voice — an opportunity to share their experiences and have an impact on their collective future.

Which is why we are so grateful, and wish to say thank you to every student who took the survey, to our schools for allowing us into their classrooms, and to the volunteers and staff who made this project possible. 

To explore the results of the 2024 survey, view 2026’s results later this spring, or help Mountain Youth gain a more in-depth understanding of what’s happening in Eagle County right now, visit MountainYouth.org/survey.