Policy We are Watching

Education – Provision of Wrap Around Services for Students in the State of Georgia

As the Council on Black Health, we are clear about the positive link between education and health that has been long established and replicated across numerous analyses and disciplines. Studies of educational attainment often relate higher educational achievement to better jobs and income, and ultimately better health. Education also fosters a learned effectiveness that that acts as a deterrent to poor health outcomes. Poor grades, grade retention, incidents of suspension and expulsion, and racial inequities in school can reduce the positive protective effects of educational on health.

A solution is universal access to quality wraparound services for every child in need.

The concept of wraparound services is applied broadly to indicate the creative combination of all types of services, resources, and supports that are needed by a child and family. They are community-based, culturally relevant, individualized, strength-based, and family centered. Wraparound plans are comprehensive and address multiple life domains across home, school, and community, including living environment; basic needs; safety; and social, emotional, educational, spiritual, and cultural needs.¹

1. Michael Myaard et al, “Applying Behavior Analysis Within the Wraparound Process: A Multiple Baseline Study,” Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders 8, no. 4 (October 2000): 216–29; Voices for Georgia’s Children, “The Whole Child Primer,” (Atlanta, GA: 2019), 29.