Student wellness is having an impact on education in Georgia.
That was the message Thursday as education advocates and state officials gathered at the Georgia Pacific Auditorium for a Critical Issues Forum put on by the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education.
According to reports presented during “the Wellness of Education” forum, Georgia currently ranks 37th among all states in students’ health. And, nearly 80 percent of Georgia’s students need behavioral health support, but don’t receive it.
“This impacts every aspect of their education,” said State Rep. Rick Jasperse (Jasper), who presented an overview of a House Study Committee Report on Children’s Mental Health.
Jasperse said the report, which resulted in 16 recommendations, made one point “very clear.”
“We don’t have enough people trained to work with these students.”
Bobby Cagle, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Human Services, echoed that point.
“Over 13,000 children are in foster care in Georgia,” said Cagle, during a panel discussion. “If a single case worker should work with about 15 children at a time, we are now in the range of 20 to 35 children per case worker at a time. And 80 percent of those children have health and behavioral needs.
“Many of our students are acting out in class because of the trauma they have experienced, and we need to find ways to reach out and help them,” Cagle added. “We need everyone in the state to come together and develop a statewide mental health plan for our children. We all need to sit down and decide how to solve the problems.”
Dr. Garry McGiboney, Deputy State Superintendent for External Affairs and Policy for the Georgia Department of Education, stated that students with mental health issues miss an average of 18 to 30 days of school every year (double the amount of days missed by their peers), and 75 percent of children with mental health issues can’t read.
“With those numbers, what’s the chance of them finishing high school?” asked McGiboney, who added that 32 percent of a school nurse’s time is spent on mental health issues. The state currently has 1,555 nurses in the schools across the state — but need 2,225.
McGiboney also stunned many in attendance when he reported that the state’s pre-school expulsion rate is higher than that in the state’s high schools.
The panel also reported that 76 of the state’s 159 counties do not have a licensed psychologist, and 52 of the 159 counties do not have a licensed social worker. As a result, the state currently has one social worker for every 2,742 students — but needs one social worker for every 250 students.
With these numbers, all panel members all agreed that Georgia must “collectively find a solution. We must ensure that a child’s mind, body and soul are ready to be educated.
