AU recognized by American Heart Association for building culture of health in the workplace

11/23/2020 ASHLAND, Ohio – Ashland University recently earned bronze level recognition in the American Heart Association’s 2020 Workplace Health Achievement Index for taking significant steps to build a culture of health in the workplace.

The American Heart Association created the Index with its CEO Roundtable, a leadership collaborative of more than 40 CEOs from some of America’s largest companies who are committed to applying evidence-based approaches to improve their employees’ overall health. The Index uses science-based best practices to evaluate the overall quality and comprehensiveness of workplace health programs. 

A unique feature of the Index is that it calculates an average heart health score for employees of participating companies that securely submit aggregate health data. Companies receive benchmarking reports, which allow them to identify potential areas of improvement so that they can advance their annual performance and recognition.

“It’s very gratifying to be recognized at the national level for Wellness initiatives at Ashland University,” said AU Campus Wellness director Deborah Sullivan. “The American Heart Association award program focuses on best practices. Leadership must be supportive of the program, initiatives must be evidence-based and community coalitions are encouraged.”

Sullivan added that accomplishments from the 2019-20 academic year included an increase in the number of Certified Healthy Departments, Wellness Mini Grants distributed, employee health screenings and mobile mammography. A highlight was the 6 week Get Fit challenge between AU and UH which encouraged the recommendation of at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity.  It was a close challenge, with UH winning.  The AU Campus Wellness Peer Educators promoted a 4-week student challenge, Move Your Way.

The Eagle Well committee members, The Certified Healthy Department Wellness Champions and Recreation Center staff all contributed to accomplishing AU’s goals, Sullivan said.  

Ashland University is a mid-sized, private university conveniently located a short distance from Akron, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. Ashland University (www.ashland.edu) values the individual student and offers a unique educational experience that combines the challenge of strong, applied academic programs with a faculty and staff who build nurturing relationships with their students. ###