Format
Individual Presentation
First Presenter's Institution
Georgia Hope
Second Presenter's Institution
NA
Third Presenter's Institution
NA
Fourth Presenter's Institution
NA
Fifth Presenter's Institution
NA
Location
Session 9 (Sloane)
Strand #1
Mental & Physical Health
Strand #2
Academic Achievement & School Leadership
Relevance
Creating a School-Based Mental Health program within local schools provides all children access to mental health services. These programs address the needs on all three tiers providing universal prevention, early intervention, and intensive services for at-risk students. ADHD testing, assessments, peer groups, diagnostic appointments, pre-screening, group therapy, individual therapy, family therapy, community support services, and family training are just some of the services that are provided all within the school. In using the tier system to apply a SBMH, the program truly addresses all 5H strands, but most relevantly applies to Mental & Physical Health, as referenced above, followed by Academic Achievement and School Leadership. Our programs use Title 1 schools and select each particular school based on the highest percentage of free and reduced lunch. Services are provided by billing insurance, never the school or the parent. In all of our schools we have seen an improvement in overall school climate, attendance, engagement in academic activities, and a decrease in office referrals. More notably, is the academic performance improvement we have seen. Four of our schools, in our starter county, received the state recognition of "High-Progress for Title 1 Schools in Georgia". A high progress school is among the top 10 percent of the state’s Title 1 schools making the most progress in improving the performance of the “all students” group over three years on the statewide assessment.
Brief Program Description
This session is designed to give an overview of how to create a School-Based Mental Health program that benefits students on all tiers, providing universal prevention, early intervention, and intensive services for at-risk students. Meeting the unmet needs of students with mental health challenges impacts student attendance, behavioral and academic outcomes, and discipline in a positive way.
Summary
This proposal is designed to not only give an overview of how School-Based Mental Health programs benefit students on all tiers by providing universal prevention, early intervention, and intensive services for at-risk students, but how to get one in your school or implement one yourself. This proposal explains how to create and implement a SBMH program into local Title 1 schools with our sustainable model that does not bill the school, students, or family. The presentation also offers alternative options and partnerships for implementation in schools that are not Title 1. The session provides insight through sharing some trial and error experience, of what absolutely works and what does not. After the close of year three, the numbers speak for themselves, showing not only the desperate need, but the impact a SBMH program can have. We started with two schools in one county, and we are now in twenty-nine schools and seven counties. All of the schools report an improvement in overall school climate, attendance, engagement in academic activities, and a decrease in office referrals. More notably, is the academic performance improvement we have seen. Four of our schools, in our starter county, received the state recognition of "High-Progress for Title 1 Schools in Georgia". A high progress school is among the top 10 percent of the state’s Title 1 schools making the most progress in improving the performance of the “all students” group over three years on the statewide assessment. Clearly, meeting the unmet needs of students with mental health challenges impacts student attendance, behavioral and academic outcomes, and discipline in a positive way.
Evidence
Below are a list of references that show both the need for SBMH programs and the positive results that are gained from their successful implementation. The implementation of SBMH shows significant decreases in behavioral referrals to the office, as well as an improvement in attendance, school climate, engagement in academic activities, and academic achievement. A study done by Purdue stated a school in Dallas, showed: 95 percent decrease in discipline referrals, a 13 percent decrease in course failures, and a 32 percent decrease in school absenteeism among students enrolled in the comprehensive SBMH.
SBMH is new to the state of Georgia and DBHDD along with the Center of Excellence are working on collecting the statewide data after the close of the year three school year, and we are excited to see these numbers!
What our program can report is that four of our schools that have a SBMH program in place won the state recognition of "High-Progress for Title 1 Schools in Georgia". A high progress school is among the top 10 percent of the state’s Title 1 schools making the most progress in improving the performance of the “all students” group over three years on the statewide assessment.
https://www.purdue.edu/hhs/hdfs/fii/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/s_dcfis23report.pdf
http://www.childrensdefense.org/library/data/mental-health-factsheet.pdf
http://www.whyy.org/news/sci20090302Mentalprepub.pdf
http://ghpc.gsu.edu/2016/02/12/schools-ideal-place-to-help-kids-access-mental-health-services/
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/113/6/1839
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2556722/
http://www.socialworktoday.com/archive/111312p24.shtml
http://healthyfutures.nea.org/importance-school-based-mental-health-services/
Biographical Sketch
Jenny Wilhoite, M.Ed, was the original "guinea pig" of Georgia HOPE's School-Based Mental Health Program. Jenny assisted in creating and implementing a successful and sustainable SBMH program in her starter school, which was written into a successful Georgia HOPE protocol for SBMH expansion. Georgia HOPE launched its SBMH program through a GAP grant, which started in two schools in one county in the first year, 12 schools in four counties the second year, and 29 schools in 7 counties in the current program year. Jenny is now SBMH Program Manager and oversees 20 of those schools, while still being a SBMH therapist in her original starter school of Woodlawn Elementary in Murray County.
Keyword Descriptors
School-Based Mental Health, early intervention, PBIS, RTI, Mental Health, therapy, counseling
Presentation Year
2019
Start Date
3-6-2019 11:15 AM
End Date
3-6-2019 12:30 PM
Recommended Citation
Wilhoite, Jenny, "How to Make School-Based Mental Health Work" (2019). National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference. 84.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_savannah/2019/2019/84
Included in
Child Psychology Commons, Counseling Psychology Commons, Counselor Education Commons, School Psychology Commons, Social Work Commons, Student Counseling and Personnel Services Commons
How to Make School-Based Mental Health Work
Session 9 (Sloane)
This session is designed to give an overview of how to create a School-Based Mental Health program that benefits students on all tiers, providing universal prevention, early intervention, and intensive services for at-risk students. Meeting the unmet needs of students with mental health challenges impacts student attendance, behavioral and academic outcomes, and discipline in a positive way.
