Students in Three Washington Districts to Receive More Robust Mental Health Supports
In 2018, more than a third of 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students surveyed indicated that they’d felt sad or hopeless for at least two weeks during the last year. Nearly 1 in 10 indicated that they had attempted suicide in the past year, according to Healthy Youth Survey data.
To combat these trends, school staff and community-based mental health providers in three districts will team up to identify needs, deliver mental health supports, and monitor student progress.
The project, funded by a $9 million, five-year grant through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) kicks off October 1, 2020, and is focused on building collaborative partnerships between state, regional, and local systems to promote the healthy development of school-aged youth and prevent youth violence through an integrated system of supports.
“At a time when mental health concerns continue to increase, the Yakima School District is honored to partner with OSPI and neighboring districts to assure student assistance beyond academics,” said Trevor Greene, Superintendent of Yakima School District, one of the grant recipients. “A Yakima School District — OSPI partnership demonstrates a commitment to ensuring equitable support for all students, regardless of circumstance.”
The work, a collaboration between the Sunnyside, Wahluke, and Yakima school districts, as well as Educational Service District 105 and OSPI, will serve nearly 72,000 students and staff. The districts were chosen in part because of their considerable mental health related issues; 30–43% of students report current depression, and 18–22% report having contemplated suicide in the last year, according to 2018 Health Youth Survey results.
Specifically, the project’s goals are to:
- Increase awareness of mental health issues among school-aged youth;
- Train school personnel and other adults who interact with school-aged youth to detect and respond to mental health issues; and,
- Connect school-aged youth who may have behavioral health issues and their families to needed services.
Teams will assess, refer, triage, case manage, and monitor student progress, and school staff will deliver intervention services in consultation with mental health providers. Teams will also identify mental health needs, map resources, and provide literacy activities for school staff. Additionally, community-based mental health providers will become embedded into the school system to deliver culturally and developmentally appropriate, evidence-based mental health services.
To meet project goals, teams will evaluate student level indicators, including absenteeism, suspension/expulsion, and student engagement, as well as the number of school buildings with tiered support teams, the number of social emotional learning professional development opportunities.
