Success in School Initiative

Department of Social Services

Organization

Organization: Department of Social Services of Wilson, NC

The Department of Social Services of Wilson, NC provides a wide array of social services to the public. It defines its central mission as that of "promoting safety, self-determination, and self-sufficiency for families, children, and adults through the delivery of services in a professional and caring manner" ("Department of Social Services of Wilson, NC," 2015). Services include connected in-need members of the public to childcare resources; coordinating giveaways of free food and clothing; and directing families to federal or outside resources for healthcare and other vital services. Its most recently-launched program is "Success in School," a program for teen parents designed to help keep them focused on their education even while dealing with the challenges of parenting. The focus of the program is on girls given that girls are more likely to be the primary caretakers of children amongst teen parents.

Teen parents have a much higher dropout rate than their peers that are not parents and this program is designed to address this fact. "About 70% of all students who drop out of school early, do so because of teen pregnancy. The drop-out rates among pregnant teens is 90% across the United States" ("Drop-out rates among pregnant teens," 2009). African-American and Latino-American girls are more likely to become pregnant at an early age and thus teen pregnancy also exacerbates racial gaps in achievement in education and professional advancement. "In 2012, Hispanic adolescent females ages 15-19 had the highest birth rate (46.3 births per 1,000 adolescent females), followed by black adolescent females (43.9 births per 1,000 adolescent females) and white adolescent females (20.5 births per 1,000 adolescent females)… in the United States will give birth by her 20th birthday, with substantial differences by race/ethnicity: 9% of white adolescent females, 18% of black adolescent females, and 20% of Hispanic adolescent females" ("Trends in teen pregnancy and childbearing," 2014). The Success in School program does not specifically target girls of any racial or ethnic background but its emphasis clearly has the potential to provide critical assistance to girls from historically discriminated-against groups in the United States.

The Success in School Initiative takes a case management approach to encourage teenage mothers to keep attending school. The program is managed by a Childcare Team consisting of a team leader, five social workers, and an accountant technician. According to its mission statement, "Success in Schools is focused on strengths and intense case management to encourage, support, educate, and motivate teen parents to continue their goal of achieving a high school diploma and to gain social and work skills needed to be successful in school, work and life" ("DDS Success in School receives award," 2012). The program is holistic in its approach and provides psychological support for the mothers as well as practical assistance such as subsided childcare. The experts involved in the program combine to be able to improve both the health and the social outcomes of the involved participants. Given the deficits often exhibited by teenage mothers in both areas, a multidisciplinary approach is essential.

The program was the winner of the Crystal Star Award in 2011 for Excellence in Dropout Recovery, Intervention and Prevention. At the time of the award, the program had already made a demonstrable impact upon people's lives. Since implementation "133 teen parents have been served by the program and 55 have graduated from high school since 2008" ("DDS Success in School receives award," 2012). The program calls its core philosophy a 'best practices' one, based upon current evidence of what works to keep teens enrolled in school. For example, childcare often conflicts with high school commitments: the program offers teenage girls vital financial assistance in the form of subsidized childcare to reduce this conflict so they do not feel a need to choose between caring for their children and staying in school.

The program is constantly expanding and changing so it can better meet the needs of teen parents. In April 2015, a new position entitled Program Coordinator for the Partners for a Healthy Baby will work for the Success in School Program to focus on helping the children of pregnant teens meet developmental milestones. Pregnant teens are more at-risk for not seeking out prenatal care, for poor nutrition during pregnancy, and for low birth weights. "Children born to teenage mothers are less likely to receive proper nutrition, health care, and cognitive and social stimulation. As a result, they are at risk for lower academic achievement" ("Teen pregnancy risks," 2014). Girls born to pregnant teenage mothers are more likely to become pregnant themselves and children born to teen mothers are more likely to serve time in jail when they mature ("Teen pregnancy risks," 2014). It is hoped that early intervention will mitigate the risks.

Intensive case management approaches will vary depending upon the needs of the student. The school will also offer transportation assistance when needed to students for doctor's visits during the pregnancy. " According to one study, many pregnant teens miss frequent days of school due to medical appointments and prenatal care" ("Drop-out rates among pregnant teens," 2009). Counseling will also be provided to students to prevent repeat pregnancy, given that an adolescent pregnancy dramatically increases the individual's risk of having a second one. "In 2013, almost one in six (17%) births to 15- to 19-year-olds were to females who already had one or more babies" ("Trends in teen pregnancy and childbearing," 2014).