sharing information, advocating for self and oth- ers, and working with health care professionals toward common goals help to achieve under- standing about health. Healthy NewsWorks stu- dent journalists have the opportunity to practice all of these skills, to their benefit and the benefit of their communities. To all Healthy NewsWorks students: you are our health-literacy heroes! You are already health leaders yourselves, and I know that you’ll continue to drive change in your communities for years to come. Thank you for using your voices, creativity, and enthusiasm to make the world a healthier place! — By Susan Cosgrove, MPA, CPHQ Ms. Cosgrove is director of health literacy for the Health Care Improvement Foundation. Foreword Cultivating the ability to understand health information Since 2010, the Health Care Im- provement Founda- tion has worked with patients and provid- ers to improve health literacy in Penn- sylvania. Our work includes training health care provid- ers, empowering pa- tients, and promoting organizational change. Our vision is a responsive, coordinated health care community that fulfills the needs of patients and consumers, and achieves better health. Supporting Healthy NewsWorks’ mission of fos- tering curiosity and critical thinking in elementary and middle schoolers is a natural extension of our health-literacy activities. The ability to gather, use, and communicate reliable health information re- quires lifelong cultivation. Introducing these skills at a young age through the medium of journalism is a powerful pathway for creating engaged and health-literate patients and providers. Health information is complicated. Everyone has moments when they are confused about what to do to take care of themselves. Asking questions, 3 Illustration by Hailey Segarra, fifth grade, St. Veronica Healthy Hero