Children- Their Future Depends on What We Do Today

1. Children- Their Future Depends on What We Do Today Coordinated School Health: A Model Plan

2. The Initial Plan • Vision – Within 3 years barriers to learning will be reduced to allow students the opportunity to learn • Mission – Service deliveries to students through school and community in order to improve student, staff, school and community performance

3. The Measurable Goals • Decrease Dropout Rates by 3% • Increase graduation rates by 2% • Increase attendance to: Elementary 97% Middle and High to 95% • Decrease lost days by 3% to Health and Behavior Problems • Improve equity of opportunities and services by 50% for all students

4. Moving from a 2 to a 3 component model for school improvement Instruction Enabling School Student Family Community Management

5. Our Population • Mobile County Public Schools • 65,000 students • 43,485 or 67 % • are Title One Students

6. Enhancing School Effectiveness by Addressing Barriers to Student Learning Enhancing School Effectiveness by Addressing Barriers to Student Learning • Health Services • Transportation Services Through Coordinated Efforts

7. Health Services - $700,000 • 12 Registered Nursing Positions • Travel-local, state and national • Staff Development • Equipment and Supplies • Audio visual materials/ reference materials

8. Direct Student Services • Doctor, Dentist visits • Counseling • Medication and medical equipment

9. Student Mental/Emotional Needs “School systems are not responsible for meeting every need of their students. But, when the need directly affects learning, the school must meet the challenge.” • Carnegie Task Force on Education

10. Support Team Referrals Transformed/Priority Schools FY 2005 Referrals • Medical 157 • Academic 48 • Counseling/Mental Health 364 • Attendance 146 • Social 109 • Other 68

11. Impact of Health Services Interventions at all MCPSS Schools • Attendance Data: Q2 04 – Q2 05 48% of the schools increased attendance from 04-05 • Grade Comparison Q1 05 - Q2 05 65% of students (with grades posted on DAISI) who were helped with medical care this school year brought up their grades

12. Health Services • “School nursing is a specialized practice of professional nursing that advances the well being, academic success, and life-long achievements of students. To that end, school nurses facilitate positive student responses to normal growth and development; promote health and safety; intervene with actual and potential health problems; provide case management services; and actively collaborate with others to build student and family capacity for adaptation, self management, self advocacy and learning.”

13. 12 Nurses caring for over 45,000 students who have been identified eligible to receive Title I services Evaluation of Services FY 2004 School Visits 5506 Home Visits 230 Other Visits 398 (MD visits, hospitals, community agencies, etc.) Conferences 24939 Nursing InvestigationsCommunicable Disease Title I 2927 Headlice 1389 Processed 4272 Impetigo 26 Referrals Ringworm 161 Scoliosis 348 Scabies 4 Dental 2520 Miscellaneous Hearing 733 Medical 1564 Vision 1849 ADHD 779 Abuse 247 Suicide 29

14. The Problem Addressed In The Media USATODAY.com - Nurse shortage puts school kids at risk USATODAY.com - In Mass. district, nurses take proactive role in kids' health USATODAY.com - Utah mom on mission in state with few nurses USATODAY.com - Instead of a nurse, a locked door USATODAY.com - Breathing complications leave girl brain damaged USATODAY.com - School blamed in boy's death

16. The McComb Healthy Schools Project 2003 The Safety Net: The McComb Nine Component Coordinated School Health, Wellness and Safety Model McComb School District Dr. Pat Cooper, Superintendent 695 Minnesota Avenue P.O. Box 868 McComb, MS 39649 (601) 684-4661 Msd1

17. The McComb Healthy Schools ProjectThe Safety Net: The McComb Nine ComponentCoordinated School Health, Wellness and Safety Model

18. What is the Safety Net? • The Safety Net is a coordinated school health and wellness model developed by the McComb School District in 1996 to improve the health, social and academic outcomes and experiences for children in the district’s schools. • The nine program components that make up the Safety Net are: • Academic Opportunity • Community and Parent Involvement • Counseling and Psychological Services • Health Instruction • Health Services • Healthy Nutrition • Physical Education • Safe and Healthy School Environment • Staff Health and Wellness

19. What are the results of the Safety Net? • Significant increases in reading, language and math test scores on the MCT and Terra Nova. Overall, one group of children moved from the 30th percentile to the 47th percentile on the Terra Nova test within four years. In 2000, these 46.5% of these children were in the bottom quarter, four years later only 22.6% of them were. MCT scores for 2nd – 8th grade reading, language and math increased by 32.8 to 80.4 points. • The graduation rate has increased from 77.03% in 1996-97 to 90.97% in 2002-03. This is nearly 10% higher than the state average.

20. Prior to 2001-02, an average of 39.4 children were dropping out of school. After the implementation of a positive discipline program, only 14.5 children were dropping out. • The McComb School District’s special education inclusion rate is double that of the state of Mississippi. We ranked 1st in providing special education services within general education classrooms. Also the total number of special education students has decreased from 443, 1997 to 375, 2004.

21. Only 3% of teens in our Teen Parent Program had a repeat teen pregnancy before the age of 20, compared to 23.5% for Mississippi and 20.9% for the United States. None of our students had a repeat pregnancy while still in the McComb School District. • A decrease of 59% was seen in juvenile crime arrests out of school. • Decreases of more than 42% in suspensions/detentions and 33% in expulsions have occurred since the Safe Schools component was initiated.

22. The McComb Healthy Schools Project has provided this safety net for all levels of students through: • A strong core academic curriculum that includes Advanced Placement and gifted classes, a strong vocational-technical component and an effective special education inclusion program. • A health clinic with at least one school nurse and therapist at every school.

23. Student Assistance Teams (SAT) at each school to address individual student needs using a pro-active preventive approach, coordinated services and an effective referral system for services not provided by the school district. • A safe learning environment conducive to learning with landscaped and renovated facilities, security officers on-site and a customer friendly staff with a motivating attitude.

24. Access to on-site child-care and a wellness program for employees. • Parent training in literacy, parenting, and family violence prevention. • A program that encourages and supports teen parents to stay in school and provides childcare for their infants.

25. Their Mission “… committed and nurturing community taking responsibility every day for positively impacting the physical, social and academic well-being of every child and challenging him to become an extraordinary individual empowered to change the world.”

26. The Brutal Facts • McComb is a small rural community in Pike County, Mississippi. It is a close knit community with many strengths and more than a few challenges. Many of our children live in high poverty neighborhoods and, because so many children qualified for free or reduced meals, all schools except the high school now provide all children with free meals. At the high school, 75% of the students qualify for free or reduced meals. The following data describes some of the challenges facing the children in our community and in surrounding Pike County.

27. Research indicates that children today are not as healthy as the generation before them and are developing lifelong addictions to drugs, alcohol, cigarettes and other forms of tobacco in increasing numbers. They are not as physically active, have poor diets and are exposed daily to dangers in their environments. One negative consequence leads to another and, before long, too many of our children are on a Wheel of Misfortune that only swallows up more and more of our citizenry each generation.

28. “[Children]… who face violence, hunger, substance abuse, unintended pregnancy, and despair cannot possibly focus on academic excellence. There is no curriculum brilliant enough to compensate for a hungry stomach or a distracted mind. National Action Plan for Comprehensive School Health Education, American Cancer Society, 1992

29. “73% of adults from a nationally representative sample felt that health education in schools was definitely necessary.” Mid-Continent Research for Education & Learning Survey, 1998

30. Establishing the Infrastructure • The heart of the plan concentrated on the health of our students and families. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs served as the basis of our infrastructure and school health as the mechanism for attaining results and successful reform. School programs were specifically designed to address each need:

31. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

32. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Coordinated School Health Program 1. Physical Health-Health Services, Physical Education, Staff Wellness, Food and Nutrition 2. Safety and Free of Fear-Safe and Healthy Environment 3. Sense of Belonging & Being Loved-Counseling, Integrated Community/School Health 4. Positive Self-Esteem- Counseling/Achievement 5. Motivated and Learning- Academic Opportunities

33. McComb Nine Component CoordinatedSchool Health, Wellness and Safety Model • Academic Opportunity- Early identification and individualized strategies ensure children are prepared for success. Teachers have sufficient time to teach and students have sufficient time to learn.

34. Community & Parent Involvement- An integrated school, parent and community approach that establishes a dynamic partnership to enhance the health and well-being of students. • Counseling & Psychological Services-Services provided include broad-based individual and group assessments, interventions, counseling and referrals that attend to the emotional and social health of students.

35. Health Instruction-A planned, sequential, PreK-12th grade curriculum is provided that addresses all dimensions of health where the focus is on health literacy to enhance each student’s independent thinking skills and decision making. • Healthy Nutrition-Healthy, nutritious and appealing snacks and meals are provided for staff and students.

36. Health Services-Services are provided for students in a clinic setting to assess, protect and promote health. • Physical Education-A planned, sequential, PreK-12th grade curriculum that provides cognitive content and learning experiences in physical fitness and individual, dual and team sports.

37. Safe & Healthy School Environment-Physical and aesthetic surroundings and psychosocial climate and culture in schools that maximizes the health of students and staff. A safe and attractive learning environment where self-esteem, effective communication and respectful interpersonal relationships is promoted.

38. Staff Health & Wellness-Programming for staff that provides health assessments, education and fitness activities and mirrors the district’s commitment to healthy lifestyles.

39. The Beginning • He had proactive leadership • He implemented the program step by step • He focused on program supports

40. He did lots of Research and Evaluation to gain funding sources. • For example, when the McComb School District’s nurses wanted to screen elementary school children for hypertension, there were no models for doing this so they created one. The results of the screenings were published in cooperation with the National Association of School Nurses in February 2001.

41. Staff Resources • – Never underestimate the power of having the right staff in the right positions. It is a critical factor in implementing such a comprehensive school health initiative. Once you have the right staff on board, cultivate their leadership skills and give them the freedom to act in the best interests of the community’s vision. Applaud results and discuss problems as they appear, and they will appear. Insist on accountability as displayed by data results.

42. Technology • Coordination • They support health and wellness for everyone in the school environment. • They recognize and support the potential of every student. • They keep their eyes on the prize

43. The Road Ahead • McComb’s Nine Component Coordinated School Health program creates that foundation for our children, teachers and staff. Caring teachers, unique methods of instruction, and non-traditional time frames are the bridges that students can use to become healthy and productive citizens in our community.

44. Coordinated School Health (http://mnschoolhealth.com/article.html?z=6373&b=index2&articleID=060125094500-137417)

45. “Our challenge is to continue to build the bridge while walking across it to a healthier tomorrow for our children.”