Many human services organizations focus on serving children and families. Whether it’s addressing issues of stable housing, food insecurity, medical needs, child care or mental health to name a few, human services as a field is deeply engaged in the work of strengthening children and families. There is a natural alignment between the work of human services with children and families and that of the K-12 education system.

7.5.1 Purposeful partnership: human services and schools

Schools are full of children who have families. Many of the issues that human services organizations are dedicated to addressing affect school-aged children. Increasingly, there has been an effort to bring human services to the schools in the hopes of improving the outreach and the effectiveness of services available to support our most vulnerable children and families. This effort has been particularly true of the public education system. The growing partnership between human services organizations and public schools has resulted in expanded resources for children and families ranging from on-site medical and dental clinics for low income families to laundry and shower services. In this section we will explore some of the most common issues faced by school-aged children and their families through the lens of school-based human services partnerships.

7.5.2 Embedding human services in schools

Schools provide reliable access to children and families. Increasingly, school districts are recognizing the value of co-locating human services programs within their school buildings. Schools may invite community partners in to offer services such as food banks, community health clinics, and vision and dental screenings for children. It is clear that students are better learners when their basic needs are met. Those schools are in the business of providing education and academic foundations, working to ensure the security of basic needs may be seen as an investment in student learning because it improves student readiness.

School districts provide dedicated services through efforts such as Title I grants from the federal government to reach students navigating poverty. These services include targeted outreach to housing vulnerable students, weekend food backpack projects to improve student and family nutrition, and offering locations for community health clinics to provide free and low cost medical care, including child immunization, well child physicals, and in some cases immediate care services for uninsured community members. Special education services may partner with occupational therapy programs to improve learning outcomes, another example of human services partnerships with public schools. Investments in student mental health may include collaboration with community mental health services.

7.5.3 Creative Solutions

The human services profession values multi-disciplinary knowledge and collaboration. An example of leveraging multiple disciplines and funding streams, the school district in Corvallis, Oregon went so far as to fund its own mental health initiative, bringing certified mental health practitioners into each school and allowing family members of school district students to access these mental health services alongside their school-age children (Mahoney, M. 2019). The program has become self-sustaining through obtaining status as a Medicaid insurance Provider. This means the school district can bill Medicaid directly for the mental health services it provides to low income students and their family members.

The integration of human services into their school district has reduced the wait time for students seeking services and drastically increased the amount of available youth oriented mental health support. When schools invest in partnerships with human services, student learning outcomes improve. In this way, human services programs can help schools be more successful in their mission To Launch today’s youth into tomorrow’s leaders.

7.5.4 Applying the bioecological model to schools and human services

Urie Bronfenbrenner’s model of human development (see Chapter 1 for a review of the theory), known as the bioecological model of development, provides an excellent framework for understanding human services as part of the school community.

7.5.4.1 Schools and the community (the mesosystem)

When microsystems interact with each other it creates a mesosystem. Children have a microsystem relationship with their parents. They also have a microsystem relationship with their teachers. The teachers and the parents have a relationship with each other only because they share a relationship with the individual child. Therefore the teacher and the parents have a mesosystem relationship.

Many human services programs are based on mesosystem relationships. Head Start is a well-known example of a human services program designed to reach parents through establishing relationships with children. By providing a service of Early childhood education, Headstart programs are able to form relationships with families and communities, thereby extending the reach of their services and those who can benefit. Because the primary relationship is with the child Who participates in early childhood education, the relationships beyond that child are considered measure system relationships.

7.5.4.2 Schools and social structures (the exosystem)

Exosystems represent factors that influence the development of an individual but do not directly involve the individual. An example of an exosystem that might be easy to understand is a neighborhood. Most people remember the street they grew up on, and can probably describe it with details that make it unique from the neighborhoods around it. Neighborhoods may be organized around characteristics such as ethnic or racial groups or socioeconomic status. They may be defined by a particular or unique topographical feature, such as a river or a mountain. An individual’s experience of development may be impacted by the features or qualities of their neighborhood. If you grow up near the ocean you may be more likely to surf, if you grow up in the mountains you may be more likely to ski.

Schools are influenced by their neighborhoods. If a school is in a community with a large Hispanic population It is more likely that the school will incorporate bilingualism in its classrooms and its programming. Schools in neighborhoods with higher property value may find they have more financial resources to provide services for students in schools in lower socioeconomic neighborhoods. The human services a school interacts with will be influenced by its exosystem. The next section outlines some common school-based programs and initiatives that are a part of the exosystem.

7.5.5 Common School-Based Programs

While every state, school district, and individual school is unique, these are some common themes that occur in schools, and the programs and initiatives that meet the needs of children and families.

7.5.5.1 Mental health

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has identified mental health as a leading health issue for children and adolescents. More than 1 in 3 students report experiencing persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness. Depression, anxiety, and feelings of isolation are experienced by 70% of teens age 13 and older.

One in six U.S. youth aged 6-17 experience a mental health disorder each year, and half of all mental health conditions begin by age 14 (NAMI, 2022). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), behavior problems, anxiety, and depression are among the most commonly diagnosed mental disorders in children. Yet, about half of youth with mental health conditions received any kind of treatment in the past year.

School-based mental health services bring trained mental health professionals into schools and connect youth and families to more intensive resources in the community. They play an important role in identifying needs and helping children get help early. School-based mental health services may reduce barriers to access for communities of color, immigrant and refugee families, and low-income students.

School-based mental health services are delivered by trained mental health professionals. Sometimes school districts employ mental health staff, such as school psychologists, school counselors, and school social workers. In other instances, school districts provide space for community mental health partnerships. Many use a combination of school employees and community programs. One key aspect of school-based mental health is providing services on site and during the school day. By removing barriers such as transportation, scheduling conflicts and stigma, school-based mental health services can help students access needed services.

Early diagnosis and treatment is effective and can help young people stay in school and on track to achieving their life goals. In fact, the earlier the treatment, the better the outcomes and lower the costs. However, accessing mental health can be a long process, with wait times that stretch into several months. For teens exhibiting signs of psychosis, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) found there is an average wait of 74 weeks for consistent, non-crisis care to be established. School-based mental health programs are an effective means to getting mental health care to children and families in a timely way, improving learning and mental health outcomes for the individual, the family and the school community.

7.5.5.2 Houselessness and the McKinney Vento Act

Education can provide houseless children a way out, but practical barriers, such as residency restrictions, medical record verification, and transportation issues, often keep houseless youth out of school. The original McKinney Act, passed in 1987, focused on assistance to the houseless. The McKinney-Vento Act, as reauthorized in 2015, attempts to overcome these barriers by mandating equal opportunity for a free public education for houseless students.

Under the re- authorized McKinney-Vento, school districts must appoint a local liaison to ensure, among other things, that (1) children and youth eligible under McKinney Vento are identified; (2) that they immediately enroll in, and have a full and equal opportunity to succeed in, the schools of the district; and (3) they receive educational services for which they are eligible, and referrals to health care services, dental services, mental health services, and other appropriate services.

7.5.5.3 Special education and the Individuals and Disabilities Education Act

Passed in 1975, the Education for all Handicapped Children Act (EHCA) required all schools who receive public funds to provide equal access to education for all children with disabilities. The act addressed four main objectives:

1. To ensure that special education services are available to children who need them
2. To guarantee that decisions about services to students with disabilities are fair and appropriate
3. To establish specific management and auditing requirements for special education
4. To provide federal funds to help the states educate students with disabilities

The act also contains a provision that disabled students should be placed in the least restrictive environment-one that allows the maximum possible opportunity to interact with non-impaired students. Separate schooling may only occur when the nature or severity of the disability is such that instructional goals cannot be achieved in the regular classroom. EHA was revised and renamed as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act(IDEA) in 1990 for improvement of special education and inclusive education.

7.5.5.4 IDEA

The IDEA requires that public schools create an Individualized Education Program (IEP) for each student who is found to be eligible under both the federal and state eligibility/disability standards. The IEP provides an overview of a student’s academic ability and achievement as well as an assessment of how a student’s disabilities affect or would affect the child’s involvement in their educational environment. The IEP also specifies the services to be provided and how often, and it specifies accommodations and modifications to be provided for the student. An IEP must be designed to meet the unique educational needs of that child in the Least Restrictive Environment appropriate to the needs of that child.

The key component of an effective IEP is collaboration. When a child qualifies for services, an IEP team is convened to design an education plan. In addition to the child’s parents, the IEP team must include at least:

• one of the child’s regular education teachers (if applicable);
• a special education teacher;
• someone who can interpret the educational implications of the child’s evaluation, such as a school psychologist;
• any related service personnel deemed appropriate or necessary; and
• an administrator or CSE (Committee of Special Education) representative who has adequate knowledge of the availability of services in the district and the authority to commit those services on behalf of the child.

Based on the full educational evaluation results, this team collaborates to write for the individual child an IEP that will provide a free, appropriate public education.

7.5.5.5 Youth programs

One of the most common ways to work with youth in the context of human services is through youth programs. Sports, music, after school clubs and summer camps are but a handful of ways to invest in youth development. Youth programs may be organized through centers such as Boys and Girls Club of America, who often provide after school care in addition to a variety of community programming. City and county sports and recreation departments may provide opportunities for youth to organize around a shared interest or be a source of summer camp experiences. These programs depend on energetic, knowledgeable and passionate staff to provide opportunities for youth to grow and develop intellectually, emotionally, and physically.

7.5.5.6 Technology programs pave the way toward equity in STEM

Have you ever made a robot out of legos? Or turned a soda can into a solar powered car? These kinds of activities have become a regular part of after school activities made available through partnerships with public schools and youth programs. Technology labs introduce new forms of hardware and software, and provide instruction on using technology safely. Kids can even learn computer coding and programming while playing Minecraft! Youth programs that provide increased opportunities to learn about and creatively apply technology are important in addressing gender, race, and ethnicity differences in technology careers, bridging differences in rural and urban technology opportunities, and closing the gap in socioeconomic status by supporting lower income neighborhood schools.

One way communities have introduced technology programs is through the use of Twenty-First Century Community Learning grants. These federally funded grants are an example of public-private partnerships to improve educational outcomes. They are awarded to K-12 schools and youth partnership programs to expand resources through after school programs, youth club activities and summer camps. Communities can launch programs and work to become self-sustaining. Projects accepted for the program will receive 100% funding for one year, 75% for the second year, 50% for the third year, and 25% for the fourth year. This provides time to evaluate the benefits of the program and work toward a community solution to sustain it.

As you can see, there are many ways to work with children and families in a school setting without being a licensed teacher. Instead you may choose to work in any of the programs described here, or in a similar program in your local community.

7.5.6 References

Mahoney, Megan (May 2019). “New Mental Health and Wellness Program.” Corvallis School District, https://www.csd509j.net/news/new-mental-health-and-wellness-program/.

“Mental Health by the Numbers” (June 2022). National Alliance on Mental Illness, https://www.nami.org/mhstats