Healthiest State Blog: What Does Education Mean to You?

by Heather Pitre, WHF Events and Communications Specialist

It's a question worth asking, and you can contribute your answers to this great new project sponsored by Vittana. Based in Seattle, Vittana's mission is to empower young people around the world with the education and training they need to build a life of prosperity and opportunity. Their big goal is to ignite student micro-loan markets in developing countries to reach one million young people by 2015. They are collecting answers from people all over the world, and the results are inspiring.

To me personally, education means growth. It has opened doors for me,and allowed me to pursue better jobs that I could otherwise, but mostly has made me feel like I am developing and growing as a person. Learning actually feels good. I continue to take classes and try new things, and hope to be able to do that for the rest of my life. Writing, reading books, attending workshops and events, and meeting new people are all forms of education that I enjoy. Stretching my brain is just as important as stretching my body.

Here at WHF, education means better health outcomes. Education is directly correlated with health, and those that achieve a college education or higher tend to have better lifelong health as well. Washington state currently ranks 31st among US states in high school graduation rates. Clearly, we have some work to do in this area. What are your ideas on how we might improve? What is happening in your community that is making a difference? Share your stories with us.

Check out the video to see how others are answering the question. Join us, and help us make our way toward becoming number one! Together, we can make Washington the healthiest state in the nation.