What is Child Well-Being?
Synonyms: Child Happiness; Child quality of life
Child well-being is defined in many different ways, and this term is used by a wide range of practitioners, researchers, and policymakers. The UNICEF definition of child well-being is often used as a reference and takes a broad view of well-being: “The true measure of a nation’s standing is how well it attends to its children – their health and safety, their material security, their education and socialization, and their sense of being loved, valued, and included in the families and societies in which they are born” (UNICEF, 2007). The UNICEF definition takes an ecological approach to child well-being, encompassing a child’s life as a whole and recognizing that all childhood experiences will contribute to their overall well-being. In a broad sense, well-being describes the determinants of a good life for children, the promoters of growth and development, and factors that enhance a child’s feelings of happiness and satisfaction.
What Role does Metamorphasis Powerhouse Company play in driving Child Well-Being?
Starting with strategic partnerships
At Metamorphasis Powerhouse Company, we believe quality education is a human right, and the earlier historically under-served people are exposed and immersed in quality education and living opportunities, the better the entire world can operate.
We envision a world where all citizens are employable, healthy, connected and engaged with their communities in thriving, quality-enriched lives, inspired to evolve into their best selves. We intentionally prioritize locations with a Child-Well Being Score of 65% or less, where partnerships exist to maximize impact and scalability for future opportunities to expand programs.
The educational impacts of COVID-19 have disproportionately affected rural communities such as McDonough, GA as well as communities of color across the state of Georgia. The loss of in-person instructional time and unreliable WiFi access has significantly affected PK-12 families and resulted in staggering academic gaps. Accelerating learning recovery by removing the barriers of technology and transportation to access relevant and rigorous interdisciplinary academic pathways that diversify pathways for success is an urgent priority. By increasing education equity through expanding our technology capacity and mobilizing our public spaces classroom model, including efforts that build the capacity of schools, educators, families, and communities, we increase positive outcomes for disadvantaged communities while providing relevant employable skills for a higher quality of life, while bringing people to resources they desperately need.
2020-2022: Pivoting our service model to increase capacity to serve more abundantly and intentionally
Metamorphasis Powerhouse Company programs are dedicated solely to bridging gaps of service capacity for communities, advancing education in Georgia, and partnering people and places with attainable resources to enrich the quality of life. In addition, we lead several collaborative groups- who help to expand our advocacy.
In 2020, thanks to funding from Ecolab Foundation and other funders including , Metamorphasis Powerhouse Company successfully pivoted all programs online, curated customized curriculum kits that expanded offline hands-on learning opportunities through the COVID19 pandemic to support both homeschooling and public schooling students, empowered the health and safety of more than 1500 residents across 6 counties with face masks, distributed more than 800 books through our signature literacy programs, held more than 42 workshops including a Pitch Perfect Shark Tank for Kid Entrepreneurs sponsored by Cox Communications, won a $20,000 Top Prize SPARK Challenge through United Way of Atlanta to kick off a unique program called Transform The SPARK where parents, emerging kindergartners and early childhood providers learn side-by-side through monthly meet ups with Storytime, STEM and free access to books to overcome learning loss and encourage strong learners despite the pandemic.
Community Learning Labs Model: Virtual COVID19 Response
Our Community Learning Labs are led by engaged staff members and volunteers who care about the progress of our families and communities. Our program provides up to 144 total hours of programming. Typical sessions range from 1 - 6 hr hours twice per month, facilitated by highly qualified educators who undergo a rigorous screening process. Currently, the program has been offered as a 3 tiered-hybrid program of out-of-classroom experiences resulting from our pivot to online programming due to the school closures and restriction guidelines of COVID19.
For the 2021-2022 School Year, Metamorphasis Powerhouse Company will continue to follow COVID19 guidelines with a hybrid model of online and in-person offerings. As key partners including Barnes & Noble, The Home Depot, and Public Libraries become readily available to partner for in-person on-site programming, Metamorphasis Powerhouse Company will scale back up community learning lab field trips that transform partnered everyday places into public learning classrooms.
Child Well-Being Resources in our E-Newsletter
Another resource we provide to parents, partners and community stakeholders is a Child Well-Being Resource Guide through our monthly E-newsletter, Insider Chrysalis.
Join our mailing list here to get the latest CWB resources right in your inbox.
Learn how we are aiding in school readiness and overcoming learning loss for emerging preschoolers and kindergarteners: Transform The SPARK Early Learners Program
***BREAKING NEWS*** In celebration of our 20 year Anniversary and our recent Federal BOOST Grant, we're taking our Community Learning Labs & Programs on the road with a Mobile Classroom on Wheels to increase child well-being across rural, or geographically disadvantaged zipcodes!! Visit our Donate page to learn more about how you can support us through a one-time or monthly cash donation or in-kind supplies & materials 
What can we as a community do to improve Child Well-Being?
Putting our community’s children on an equitable path to fulfilling their potential requires us to work together toward a single, shared agenda. Metamorphasis Powerhouse Company is in agreement that we need a collective vision, unified measures of achievement, strategies for how to attain success and a way to evaluate progress.
It is because of this stance that we have prioritized Child Well-Being as informed by United Way of Greater Atlanta to help drive sustainable and impactful change in the lives of the 500,000+ children living across Metro Atlanta.
To learn more about United Way of Greater Atlanta Child Well-Being Index, and view the latest Child Well-Being stats by county and zip code- visit their site here.
The following data is made possible through the Annie E. Casey Foundation Data Center in partnership with Georgia Family Connection Partnership. For the most up-to-date information, visit https://datacenter.kidscount.org/