Community Schools Optimal Health Initiative

Ryan Heath (SWK) PI, Sodus School District / Wayne County Consortium of Schools’ / U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, sub-award, 7/9/2021 – 6/30/2022.

Community Schools Optimal Health Initiative: Promoting Health and Development through School-Based and Out-of-School Programs.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is investing $3 million in the Community Schools Optimal Health Initiative, a partnership between Wayne County Community Schools and Peaceful Schools in Syracuse. Assistant Professor Ryan D. Heath in the School of Social Work will help implement and study the initiative, which aims to expand a system of supports that fosters healthy development for students across nine public school districts. The project will utilize community school systems and multitiered systems of support to identify existing assets, coordinate resources between schools and community agencies, and expand both school-based interventions and out-of-school programs.