• The Boston High School and Middle School YRBS take place from February through May of odd-numbered years (e.g., 2019, 2021, 2023).

• The YRBS is now administered concurrently to high schools and middle schools.

• The 2023 survey administration window is from February 15th, 2023 to May 30th, 2023.

• Schools will work with the OHW survey administration staff to select both a primary and a backup date within that survey administration window to administer surveys during the randomly selected classes.

• The High School YRBS is conducted in a census of schools, so all eligible BPS high schools are expected to participate. Middle schools are selected with a probability proportional to the number of students enrolled. This means that schools with more students have a greater chance of selection.

• All students in the selected school must have an equal likelihood of being chosen to participate. Therefore, classes are randomly selected from among a course all students are required to take (e.g., English classes) or from a specific period during the school day (e.g., 2nd period).

• Within randomly selected classes, all students able to complete the survey independently are eligible to participate. 

Approximately 47 schools serving grades 6 through 12 are expected to participate. Schools scientifically selected to participate will be contacted directly by the Office of Health and Wellness.

A complete list of participating schools is available in this document.

School leaders at schools selected to participate in the YRBS must 1) ensure their Master Class Schedule is uploaded and accurate in ASPEN/SIS or provide an updated copy of their Master Class Schedule for grades 6-12; and 2) designate a contact person at their school to serve as the survey liaison by emailing yrbs@bostonpublicschools.org no later than Monday, February 6th, 2023.

• Master Schedule Request Requirements 

  • Master schedules submitted must include:

    • Course Name and Section Number

    • Class Period

    • Grade Level

    • Total Enrollment

    • Teacher’s first and last name

    • Special Designations (ESL, Special Ed, etc.)

• YRBS Survey Liaison

  • The Survey Liaison at each school serves as the primary contact between Health & Wellness (OHW) and their respective school. The liaison is responsible for 1) providing requested information to OHW regarding school and class schedules; 2) communicating survey dates/times, instructions, and materials to the teachers of the randomly selected classes and; 3) making appropriate accommodations to ensure the online survey is accessible to students on the scheduled date.

  • For more information about the liaison role please review the “Boston YRBS School Leader/Liaison FAQ” linked below.

• General Timeline
  • February 6th, 2023: Deadline for each participating school to designate a survey liaison and provide their school’s Master Class Schedule
  • February 6th, 2023 - March 6th, 2023: 15 minute one-on-one phone calls between the school survey liaison and YRBS survey administration staff occur
  • February 13th, 2023 - May 30th, 2023: Survey administration window

• 2023 YRBS Memo

• FAQs

  • Do students tell the truth?

  • Boston YRBS School Leader/Liaison FAQ

  • Boston YRBS Teacher FAQ

  • Boston YRBS Parent/Guardian FAQ

• Questionnaires 

  • 2023 BPS High School YRBS Questionnaire 

  • 2023 BPS Middle School YRBS Questionnaire 

• Tech Tip Sheet and Checklist

• Student Instructional Videos

  • yrbs.bostonpublicschools.org/HSvideo

  • yrbs.bostonpublicschools.org/MSvideo

• Parent Letters

  • English - YRBS Parent Notification Letter

  • Translated parent letters are available 

• Student Resource Guide