Priority #2: Provide Training and Wellness Centers
SRI researchers met with a group of students, parents, and school staff from a large, diverse county in California in fall 2022 to talk about their experiences, preferences, and challenges related to mental health services in schools. Through these conversations, coupled with survey responses from more than 1,000 school staff, these school community members shared several important ways they think their schools can better support student mental health.
This blog is the second of three blogs summarizing recommendations from students, families, educators, mental health professionals, and administrators for improving students’ mental health services in schools.
What was the school community’s next priority?
Priority #2: Teach mental health awareness to create an environment that promotes wellness and psychological safety.
Increasing the number of specialized mental health professionals on campus provides immediate resources to support students’ mental health. However, capacity to employ additional staff may be limited due to the shortage of funding and qualified and licensed mental health providers. Another suggestion expressed by the school community for combatting the shortage of specialized staff was to teach all students and school staff about mental health prevention strategies and to create wellness centers in schools.
Provide Direct Instruction on Mental Health and Well-being
School community members recommended that students and staff learn about common mental health challenges like depression, anxiety, and bullying to provide support to peers, increase self-care and coping strategies, and improve school climate. Research shows that psychoeducation increases help-seeking (Cusimano & Sameem, 2011) and reduces suicidal behaviors (Wasserman et al. 2015). Special educators, school psychologists, and staff with training in trauma-informed care and classroom management can lead these programs, and many online versions of evidence-based programs are available for free or low cost from the What Works Clearinghouse and the Center on PBIS.
Develop and Maintain Wellness Centers
Wellness centers are dedicated spaces within school buildings that offer counseling, drop-in services, and space for students to calm down. Participants we spoke with emphasized that wellness centers also increase trust in, and visibility of, a school’s available resources, which means students are more likely to use them. School staff described wellness centers as places students go to when they are struggling and where they can receive more holistic and preventive services.
The following are some specific features of a wellness center that many participants felt were important to include:
- Calm, open spaces for activities like drawing, reading, working on homework
- Artwork on the walls
- Private rooms available for individual or small group meetings between students and a mental health provider
- Food, snacks, and drinks
- Strategic and flexible hours of operation (e.g., open before or after regular school hours for at least a few days of the week) to increase availability to all students
This resource from the National Center for School Mental Health (NCSMH) provides more information on the Wellness Center Framework.
Although there are clear benefits of a having a permanent designated calm space for students, there is also a risk that such settings could encourage the loss of instructional time for students displaying challenging behaviors, as a form of “soft” in-school suspension. As a result, it is essential the centers are staffed by school personnel with training in evidence-based de-escalation and classroom re-integration strategies with the goal of balancing the need for a safe and calm space with the need to support the development of coping skills and self-regulation that minimizes loss of instructional time.
Stay tuned for our next blog in the series: Addressing the most common barriers to mental health services: Referrals, stigma, and lack of access
Did you miss Priority #1? Read it now: Priority #1: Provide More Specialized Mental Health Professionals and Paraprofessionals on Campus.
Topics: Educator professional development and support Mental health School-based supports and systems
Tags: Wellness Centers