The PSI recruiting team was on campus in Columbus September 13th attending The Ohio State University Career and Internship Fair. In addition to meeting students and talking about opportunities at PSI, Brutus stopped by to learn more about us and how TeamPSI makes an impact in our school partners.
#theohiostateuniversity #buckeyecareers #TeamPSI
For Ohio parents and students the 2023-2024 school year could look very different. Schools will offer more free lunches, more mental health training for staff and more vouchers to cover the cost of private tuition.
Most of those changes will take effect Oct. 3, but some major shifts in education policy and teaching methods will take months or even years. Many districts are starting to retrain their reading teachers, and grants will be awarded this fall to build new career technical centers.
Here’s what you need to know about the changes:
Starting in October all school-aged children will be eligible for an EdChoice scholarship to cover at least some of the costs of private education. How much families receive will be based on grade level and income.
The most a student can receive this year is $6,165 for kindergarten through eighth grade and $8,407 for high school. These amounts will be available for students with a household income at or below 450% of the federal poverty level. (That’s $78,880 for a family of two or $120,000 for a four-person family.) Here’s the breakdown for those who earn more:
More: Every Ohio child will be eligible for a school voucher but many won’t be able to use them.
Students enrolled in private schools can apply for an EdChoice scholarship, even those who have never attended a public school. And though the law doesn’t officially take effect until October, families who apply before Oct. 15 will receive full scholarship amount(s) for the 2023-2024 academic year. Those who apply after that deadline will get prorated amounts.
Lawmakers also expanded Ohio’s free school lunch program in the state budget. All students who qualify for reduced priced meals − including those at chartered private schools will now get them for free. Districts will continue to qualify students as free or reduced, but their schools won’t collect money for the reduced lunches.
This new rule starts on Oct. 3, but the Ohio Department of Education will reimburse schools that cover their students for the first few weeks, according to an email sent to districts.
Ohio children in kindergarten through third grade will be screened for dyslexia during the 2023-2024 school year. And schools must screen students in grades 4-6 if requested by parents or teachers.
The reason for this change is because dyslexia is a spectrum and advocates suspect many children aren’t diagnosed.
“I would say about 85% of the kids that struggle with reading, they have dyslexia, and don’t know it,” said Mike McGovern, president of the Columbus branch of the International Dyslexia Association.
The initial screening will be short, about five minutes, and it won’t confer a diagnosis of dyslexia, according to the Ohio Department of Education. Instead, the preliminary evaluation will flag children who “may be at risk of reading difficulties such as dyslexia.”
These children will be given additional monitoring and interventions. For many students, this will be enough to get them reading, McGovern said. Others will need additional screening that could lead to a diagnosis and special education.
Ohio’s two-year budget also changed how all students will learn to read, requiring public schools to use phonics-based curricula known as the science of reading.
This was a major priority for Gov. Mike DeWine, who repeatedly told reporters, “There is an actual science to reading, and certain things need to be taught.”
About 40% of the state’s third-graders are not proficient in reading, according to the most recent data from the Ohio Department of Education. And while COVID-19 was responsible for nationwide learning losses, 33% of children fell below that bar prior to the pandemic.
More: Gov. DeWine: Science is ‘abundantly clear,’ some Ohio schools teach reading wrong.
Many public school districts, including Columbus, have already moved to phonics-centered instruction. But for those that haven’t, the change won’t be immediate. Schools don’t have to switch until the 2024-25 school year.
Districts can spend this academic year getting ready. Lawmakers allocated $86 million for teacher training, $64million for new curriculum and $18 million for literacy coaches.
Ohio became the first state in the country to mandate mental health training for high school coaches when it passed the budget in June.
“It’s about the well-being of these kids,” St. Ursula lacrosse coach Todd Graham said at the time. “What can we do for these young people to help them through this difficult thing that everybody’s going through right now?”
More: ‘It’s about the well-being of these kids,’ Law requires mental health training for coaches.
The Ohio Department of Mental Health is writing the curriculum, and coaches must complete this new training when they get recertified. They can also complete the training “at any time within the duration of the individual’s new or renewed permit.”
Parents who want to use a voucher for a child with autism will have an easier time starting this fall.
The state budget expanded the list of approved ways children can qualify for Ohio’s Autism Scholarship Program. Children can be identified by their school districts, those with Individual Education Plans that “include services related to autism” and students diagnosed as autistic by a physician or a psychologist.
“In short, any student formally diagnosed as autistic now qualifies for the Autism Scholarship,” according to Disability Rights Ohio. “This is a major change that will make the scholarship accessible to many more families.”
Public, nonpublic and charter schools with students in grades 6-12 will soon have to provide free pads and tampons. The state operating budget included a $5 million appropriation to install dispensers and buy the menstrual products needed to stock them.
“We have regulated the provision of toilet paper and paper towels in public restrooms, so too we should do the same for menstrual products,” Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood, said. “It’s unhygienic and a danger actually to one’s health not to have access to menstrual products, so just like toilet paper, we need to have free and accessible access.”
Some districts already offer free pads and tampons to their students, but those that don’t will be able to access those state dollars in October.
Lawmakers expanded the ways public schools can transport students who choose to attend charter or private schools.
Ohio law requires districts to provide transportation for voucher and charter children, but many districts have struggled to fulfill this obligation−especially since the pandemic. The state even found itself in a lawsuit with Columbus City Schools over an $11 million fine for failing to transport their out-of-district students.
More: Judge blocks Ohio from withholding $11 million from Columbus City Schools.
So, state lawmakers added more flexibility in the budget, allowing schools to use vans and creating a pilot program where regional educational service centers can bus out-of-district students.
Another major priority for the DeWine administration was expanding access to career training centers across the state.
And one of the biggest barriers these schools face, according to Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, is buying the new equipment needed to expand their capacity.
The budget allocated $100 million in career tech equipment grants over the next two years. Priority will be given to centers that support careers on Ohio’s Top Jobs list like electricians and pipefitters.
Ohio hopes to train 1,000 high school teachers to teach college courses, and it allocated $6 million to do so.
The teachers will be certified through the state’s College Credit Plus program, which lets students in grades seven through 12 take free college courses that also count toward their high school graduation.
Written by Anna Staver, Legislative Reporter.
Anna Staver is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
This Summer we’ve been thinking about all the amazing people that make up #TeamPSI and we have some GREAT stories to spotlight! We are excited to share the incredible talent and achievements of our staff members who continue to make PSI a great place to work. Here’s a glimpse of how #TeamPSI is making a difference:
HUGE shoutout to Tom Craine, PSI TESOL Teacher, Summer YOUniversity teacher and organizer of Black Beanz Dance Crew, an Akron dance group of African refugees. Most of the students in Black Beanz are from West Africa and attended Yard Corps (a Shanti Community Farms Summer Work Program). While teaching here, Tom noticed some students needed direction when they were distracted in classes – and the answer was African dance.
HUGE shoutout to Melissa Marano who has developed “Internet Safety” and “Social Media” safety tips in Olmsted Falls. She received a 2023 grant for $1,000 for anything related to internet safety for 4th and 5th graders and their families. She also designed a fridge magnet that the families can use to “alert” them of important safety tools to help keep our kids safe from online predators and other important information – see below!
Melissa is a true community steward and has been able to help many families in many different ways… we are very thankful to have her on #TeamPSI! Here are more great events that Melissa has been able to organize:
May is mental health awareness month. While every day should usher in opportunities to support each others’ emotional well-being, this month we shine a spotlight on mental health issues in the hopes of destigmatizing these diagnoses and supporting those in need.
There’s never been a more relevant time for these reflections. Data from a CDC study that surveyed nearly 2,000 students demonstrate that mental health is worsening for all adolescents, but in particular for girls. The investigators reported, “America’s teen girls are engulfed in a growing wave of sadness, violence, and trauma.” Mental health emergency room visits for this age group are at an all-time high, and study respondents reported an alarming 25% of girls had at one point devised a suicide plan. In the past two years, the number of ER visits for suicide attempts in girls has increased more than 50%.
It’s no secret that pandemic-driven social isolation and elimination of major milestone celebrations contributed to teenagers’ misery. On a national scale, political and racial unrest can make the future seem chaotic and unpredictable, which only fuels the disquiet that we all feel when we watch the news. Aside from existential unease, the internet provides a source of very real and personal danger. The anonymity of online hate speech grants access to trolls spewing hostile rancor at individuals or marginalized groups. For teenagers who are, developmentally, establishing a personal identity, these assaults can disrupt the natural rhythm of this evolution, and can leave lasting scars.
But even neutral content on the internet can be damaging. The beauty standards set by celebrities on social media demand an unrealistic norm. Photoshopping and air-brushing enhance faces and bodies of posters and set an expectation that perfection is the baseline. Some social media scrollers spend upwards of 6 hours a day on these apps, and could see hundreds or even thousands of photos of models and influencers every day, and they internalize these unattainable beauty ideals, generating dissatisfaction with their own imperfections, no matter how minor. Results of a study out of Ontario by the American Psychological Association demonstrated that teen girls who took even a three-week break from social media reported “vastly improved” self-image.
No one is immune to these effects, as evidenced by the rising incidence of eating disorders and mood conditions in both boys and girls. While perhaps not as dire as the girls’ situation, the statistics surrounding adolescent boys’ mental health are daunting as well. And as the line between genders fades to a spectrum, the conversation will evolve to reflect the additional stressors that contribute to all adolescent mental health disorders. But even faced with these worsening facts and figures, we are not without hope.
The theme of 2023’s Mental Health Awareness month is “Look around, look within.” It’s a reminder that while many stressors come from outside sources, there are internal factors, like genetics, as well. Recognition that we are humans with faults can go a long way toward cultivating acceptance and tolerance. This year’s theme should also prompt us to look around at others to see what they need, and search within ourselves to recognize ways we can help bridge that gap. Examining the important role of mental health, particularly in the lives of developing young minds in the digital age, is a worthwhile endeavor.
From UH Pediatrician and PSI Medical Expert – Dr. Carly Wilbur.
Click here for more great insights from Dr. Wilbur.
CLEVELAND – (April 27, 2023) – The Union Home Mortgage Cleveland Marathon announced today an educational initiative with Twinsburg-based PSI Solutions (PSI), a leading provider of school health and educational solutions. The initiative provides resources and support to local schools, students and community members on both race weekend and beyond.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with the Union Home Mortgage Cleveland Marathon to raise the power of education,” said Meredith Sitko, Director of Strategy and Operations at PSI. “We believe partnership is critical to success in all arenas; it’s certainly the foundation of our model. This work showcases our commitment to the whole child, and the whole educator, by promoting physical, as well as mental well-being.”
PSI will host a specially-designed “Education Station” during the race at Metro Catholic, a partner school located on the marathon route. The station will provide aid to participants who work in the education field and a home for their supporters to cheer them on.
In addition, PSI will sponsor an education race team and the UH Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital Kids’ Run. PSI is the Official School Health and Educational Support Services Partner of UH Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital.
“We love working with both these organizations,” Sitko added. “It is not surprising that the mission of each of our pillar partners in the area, UH and the Cleveland Marathon, align so seamlessly.”
“We are grateful for the support of the PSI team in our mission to promote health and wellness in our community,” said Ralph Staph, Cleveland Marathon Race Director. “Whether you decide to run your first 5k, or your latest marathon, you learn a lot about yourself on the course, and in your training. PSI’s commitment to education aligns perfectly with our values, and we are excited to work together to make a positive impact on the lives of local teachers and students.”
PSI has been a trusted partner in education and health for over 45 years, providing support services to schools and communities across the state of Ohio and beyond. PSI invites all members of the community to join them in raising the power of education at the Union Home Mortgage Cleveland Marathon. To learn more about PSI Solutions and their commitment to education and health, visit their website at www.psi-solutions.org.
About PSI Solutions
PSI is a leading provider of educational and health solutions, serving schools and communities across the county for over 45 years. The company’s mission is to improve the lives of individuals by providing high-quality educational and health services that empower students, families, and communities to achieve their full potential. For more information, visit www.psi-solutions.org.
About the Union Home Mortgage Cleveland Marathon
One of the 50 oldest races in the country, the Union Home Mortgage Cleveland Marathon features the following opportunities: Full Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K, 5K and Challenge Series. Online registration and additional information are available at clevelandmarathon.com.
There are opportunities for non-profit organizations to raise funds through their participation in the race through Cleveland Marathon Charities. Find out more at clevelandmarathon.com.
Earlier this month, a study published by Harvard University’s Center for the Developing Child concluded that letting infants watch tablet, phone, and TV screens might have negative effects on their academic achievement and emotional well-being down the road.
This long-term study evaluated nearly 500 children using an EEG at 1, 1-1/2, and 9 years of age. Their collected data demonstrated that extended screen time in infancy was associated with poorer executive functioning skills almost a decade later. Executive functioning skills refer to the brain’s proficiency with time management, organization, self-monitoring, adaptable thinking, and working memory. We use these skills every day academically, socially, and professionally.
The American Academy of Pediatrics discourages all screen exposure for babies under 18 months of age. That said, not all screen time is equal. Video-chatting with grandparents is a more interactive and valuable experience than passively watching animated videos. Digital educational content for infants and toddlers does exist, but for the most part that is just not how kids that age learn. The social back-and-forth is more identifiable in real life than through a screen and is particularly more impactful for younger brains. Additionally, the brightly-colored and rapidly-moving images on a screen are more activating than calming, and tend to elicit agitation in younger kids. That agitated state can be difficult to resolve when the screen is removed.
Similar results have been previously reported by the National Institutes of Health in their 2018 Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) study which likewise assessed outcomes in 9 and 10 year-olds based on reported screen time at younger ages. For children who endorsed two hours of screen time daily as youngsters, their test scores for language and critical thinking problems were, on the whole, lower. For children who reported more than seven hours of screen time daily, MRI brain scans demonstrated evidence of thinning cortical tissue.
Both studies’ results suggest that increased screen time in infancy contributes to inferior development of executive functioning skills in childhood. However, more research is needed to define exactly which pathways are affected and what threshold of exposure is damaging. With more investigation, we will one day be able to better delineate the exact association between early exposure to screens and cognitive performance later on. For now, though, opting for face-to-face human interaction over digital substitutes when possible seems to have the best predictive outcome for growing brains, both cognitively and emotionally.
From UH Pediatrician and PSI Medical Expert – Dr. Carly Wilbur.
Click here for more great insights from Dr. Wilbur.
Vaping refers to the inhalation of aerosolized particles of a drug (marijuana or nicotine), mixed with flavoring. Most vaping devices contain a battery for power, a heating element, a place to insert the drug-containing liquid that will be heated until it vaporizes, and a mouthpiece.
Vaping was initially developed to help adults quit smoking, but quickly became popular among teenagers.
And while current reports estimate about 30% of high schoolers have vaped or currently vape, 5% of middle schoolers admit to the same.
On a chemical level, the nicotine salt delivered from a vape pen is far more powerful than the nicotine free-base that cigarette smokers inhale. This makes vaping nicotine extremely addicting. Studies show that teens who vape are 7 times more likely to smoke as adults. And over half the high schoolers polled admitted to having had their first vaping experience at age 11 or younger.
The immature frontal cortex of a teenager’s developing brain is uniquely susceptible to the harmful effects of nicotine. Regular use can cause long-term irreversible deficits in memory, attention, and concentration, and also mood disorders and permanent impairment of impulse control. Tobacco use in adolescence can also prime the brain for addiction to other stimulants of abuse like cocaine and methamphetamines.
Vaping is a $22 billion industry worldwide, with Juul being the predominant brand of electronic cigarette. Advertisements that falsely claim vaping is safer than smoking, along with child-friendly flavorings like birthday cake and mango, drive a powerful marketing campaign aimed at hooking younger consumers. The Surgeon General accurately labeled teen vaping an epidemic, and it’s a gravely dangerous one: nicotine-related deaths kill more adult Americans every year than alcohol, AIDS, car accidents, illegal drug abuse, murder, and suicide COMBINED. Let’s work together to keep our kids from vaping. It might even save their lives.
From UH Pediatrician and PSI Medical Expert – Dr. Carly Wilbur.
Click here for more great insights from Dr. Wilbur.
As the school year gets underway, we start the weekday routine of saying goodbye as parents leave for work and children leave for school. For some, however, this parting of ways and the time leading up to it can be paralyzingly scary. Sometimes there’s an event to blame, perhaps a change in the family dynamic, like parents separating, the birth of a sibling, or a move to a new home or school. Other times, kids may be overly fearful for no obvious reason. Particularly for young children starting school for the first time, breaking away from the safety of their home and parents can be understandably anxiety-provoking. Whether we understand why or not, our job as parents and teachers is to help smooth that transition and make sure every child feels safe.
To help kids learn the language they need to communicate these fears and feel heard, and to assist us as adults to reinforce the message that even when our kids of out of sight, they’re not out of mind, here are a few children’s books that might help ease the separation.
LLAMA LLAMA MISSES MAMA (Anna Dewdney)
Excellent rhymes help this book skip along while Little Llama experiences first-day jitters at his new school.
I LOVE YOU ALL DAY LONG (Francesca Rusackas)
Owen worries about separating from his mom, but she reassures him that he’s in her thoughts even when they’re not together.
DANIEL GOES TO SCHOOL (Becky Friedman)
Not just for established Daniel Tiger fans, this book explains that the time away from each other is just temporary. There is a Daniel Tiger episode on the topic as well, that includes a “Grown-Ups Come Back” song.
THAT’S ME LOVING YOU (Amy Krouse Rosenthal)
From a prolific author of books for children and adults, this story reminds the child that they can recognize their parent’s love in everything around them.
WHEN MAMA COMES HOME TONIGHT and WHEN PAPA COMES HOME TONIGHT (Eileen Spinelli)
Instead of highlighting the separation, this book focuses on all the things we can look forward to once we’re reunited after our day apart.
THE INVISIBLE STRING (Patrice Karst)
This book covers not only separating for school or work, but also other life circumstances that keep us apart when we’d prefer to be together.
OWL BABIES (Martin Waddell)
When three owlets wake up overnight to discover their mother is missing, they worry. Children will relate to the little owls’ unease and their attempts to be brave.
We’ve all been there, rushing through the morning, praying to avoid a loud, ugly scene at the bus stop or at daycare drop-off. Any opportunity to reassure our children that our love is enduring, despite distance, is a chance to make them feel loved and valued, and to strengthen our relationship with them. Allowing them to feel safe also affords us a smoother transition and a more productive morning routine. And starting out on a positive note often sets the tone for the rest of the day.
Adequate preparation and messaging in anticipation of separating can make the morning goodbyes more pleasant for everyone involved.
From UH Pediatrician and PSI Medical Expert – Dr. Carly Wilbur.
Click here for more great insights from Dr. Wilbur.
The FDA has approved an emergency use authorization for a new bivalent booster shot to aid in the fight against COVID-19. Here’s what you need to know about these new vaccines.
Q: What is a bivalent vaccine?
A: Bivalent refers to the two separate virus strains whose mRNA instructions are included in the new booster vaccine. The original, or “ancestral,” COVID strain that circulated at the beginning of the pandemic, plus the current dominant strain, the BA.4/BA.5 subvariants of Omicron. It’s not uncommon to have more than one strain of a virus incorporated into a vaccine, for instance the annual flu shot is quadrivalent, meaning it’s comprised of four different flu virus strains.
Q: Who is eligible for this new booster?
A: These vaccines can be used as a first booster (after the primary series of COVID vaccines is complete) or the second booster (as long as at least two months have passed since the first booster). Moderna’s version is available to those 18 years and older, and the Pfizer-BioNTech brand is approved for ages 12 and up.
Q: Can this be used in patients who haven’t completed a primary COVID vaccine series?
A: No, the mRNA dose in the booster vaccine is lower than what is contained in the primary vaccines. Its efficacy is only studied as a booster dose and not as a primary vaccine.
Q: Does it matter which brand of vaccine was used for the primary series?
A: It does not. Both the Moderna and Pfizer brands can be used in patients who meet age and primary vaccine requirements, regardless of which vaccines they received as their primary series or previous booster shots.
Q: Should people who had a recent COVID infection get this booster?
A: While there is no perfect answer, the prevailing wisdom currently suggests that most healthy individuals will maintain a good immune response for at least 90 days after a COVID infection, essentially functioning as a booster dose.
Q: Why is this relevant? Isn’t the pandemic just about over?
A: Unfortunately in the United States, we continue to see a death rate from COVID of about 400 people per day. While that’s much lower than the more than 4,000 daily deaths reported in the US in January of 2021, it’s still significant. With mask mandates disappearing, more relaxed standards for physical distancing, school starting, and the anticipation of colder weather on the horizon that will move people indoors, this booster is one way to limit spread and severity of disease.
Q: Does this booster shot guarantee a person won’t get COVID-19?
A: The goal of broad-reaching vaccination campaigns is to reduce what the medical community calls morbidity (the severity of sickness) and mortality (death) for large populations. COVID vaccines are no exception. The goal in vaccinating the public was to reduce the burden of serious illness and loss of life. Don’t forget that early in this pandemic, hospitals were running out of staff and space for COVID patients. Vaccination works to reduce people’s viral load, which translates into milder symptoms, lower rates of contagion, fewer community outbreaks and therefore less of an opportunity for viral mutation into a new more dangerous strain, and of course fewer deaths.
Q: Have there been human studies on the new COVID-19 boosters?
A: The data has been extrapolated from studies on mice. While that might discourage some people, keep in mind that every year a new flu vaccine is formulated using different strains of virus and it doesn’t necessitate new human trials with each new configuration. Similarly, the COVID-19 vaccine didn’t change much except for the addition of this Omicron-specific strain. Waiting to collect data from human trials would negate the attempt to protect people before the anticipated increase in COVID cases over the winter.
Q: Will this be the last booster dose?
A: It’s impossible to predict with any certainty which direction this virus will go, but the greater percentage of people in the community that have protection against contracting COVID-19, the less likely we are to see another surge of serious illness in the population.
From UH Pediatrician and PSI Medical Expert – Dr. Carly Wilbur.
Click here for more great insights from Dr. Wilbur.
