School-based Mental Health

School-based mental health and wellness initiatives are key to ensuring students are in school, healthy, ready to learn and prepared for success. Mental health includes both the absence of illness and the presence of high levels of wellbeing. Wellbeing includes having positive emotions, feeling fulfillment, contributing to the community and being able to cope with daily life stressors. Schools are a safe, accessible space for students to receive mental health services. School-based initiatives emphasize student and family voice and involvement through the processes.

For some students, mental health symptoms may first present at school. A student having trouble concentrating in class, being withdrawn, showing disruptive behavior or struggling to make friends may have mental health challenges. Mental health treatment in schools is effective in reducing mental health symptoms especially when treatment is integrated into the academic setting.

Mental Health Trends and Impact

In December 2021, the Protecting Youth Mental Health: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory noted a rise in certain mental health symptoms including depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation during the ten years leading up to the pandemic.

  • From 2009-2019, mental health challenges were the leading cause of disability and poor life outcomes in young people, with up to one-in-five children in the United States having a mental, emotional, developmental or behavioral disorder.
  • Between 2007 and 2018, suicide rates among youth ages 10-24 in the United States increased by 57%, becoming the second leading cause of death for individuals in that age range.
  • In Ohio, one-in-three students report challenges with anxiety.
  • The number of high-school aged kids with major depressive episodes has nearly doubled over the past decade.

For more information about trends and data in Ohio, visit:



School Mental Health

What is Comprehensive School Mental Health?

Comprehensive school mental health systems are built on a strong foundation of district and school professionals, including administrators and educators, specialized instructional support personnel (including school-based psychologists, social workers,  counselors,  nurses and other  health professionals), in strategic partnership with students, families and community health and behavioral health partners.

The National Center for School Mental Health recommends a comprehensive school mental health system of an array of supports and services that promote:

  • Positive school climate;
  • Social skills;
  • Mental health and well-being;
  • Support for students and staff;
  • Trauma-informed and restorative practices; and
  • Reduction in the prevalence and severity of mental illness.
Studies from The National Alliance on Mental Illness and the National Research Council have shown effective comprehensive school mental health systems contribute to improved student and school outcomes including:
  • Greater academic success;
  • Reduced absenteeism;
  • Decreased behavioral concerns;
  • Improved school climate; and
  • Improved academic outcomes.

Interconnected Systems Framework

The Interconnected Systems Framework (ISF) builds upon Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports to include School Mental Health programs and services to promote prevention and intervention within multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS). The Interconnected Systems Framework is an emerging approach for building a single system to address mental health and social-emotional well-being in schools. The Interconnected Systems Framework uses MTSS core features to ensure mental health is embedded in all aspects of the learning environment.   


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What Can Schools and Districts Do?

Core components of a comprehensive school mental health system include well-trained school and district professionals, teaming and collaboration structures, resource mapping, tiered evidence-based practices, screening and referrals and use of data to inform decision-making.

Complete a Needs Assessment

Conducting a mental health and wellness needs assessment offers a process for identifying programmatic and systemic needs. To conduct a thorough needs assessment, district and school teams examine relevant data to understand the most pressing needs of students, schools and educators.

Choose Evidence-Based Programming

Use reputable resouces that include evidence-based interventions and effective programs.

Utilize Teams and Partnerships

Collaborative partnerships guided by school staff help improve student outcomes. Schools and districts can consider engaging with representation from partners such as county and local agencies (physical health, mental and behavioral health), prevention coalitions, Alcohol Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Boards, Educational Services Centers (ESCs), state support teams, local health departments, Family and Children First Councils, juvenile court, the district liaison or educator supporting students involved in the justice system, homeless liaisons and local law enforcement.

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Resources

  • Funds to Support Student Mental Health and Wellness: Ohio’s schools and districts received Disadvantaged Pupil Impact Aid (DPIA) and Student Wellness and Success (SWSF) Funds to support wraparound services for Ohio’s students. Visit the Department's webpage for more information, including allowable uses and reporting requirements.
  • The Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, through Ohio Department of Education and Workforce federal emergency relief funding, awarded Miami University $5 million to prioritize mental health and wellness for K-12 students and staff across the state and create a School-Based Center of Excellence for Prevention and Early Intervention. The Center is a hub of current and ongoing school-based mental health initiatives, statewide projects and multiyear projects, including the Ohio School Wellness Initiative (OSWI), which includes best practice standards for student assistance programs and staff wellness frameworks.
  • ​Mental Health Professionals in Southeast Ohio: The United States Department of Education funded School Based Mental Health Professionals Grant aims to increase the number of school-based mental health professionals in seven counties within Ohio’s Appalachian region (Belmont, Guernsey, Harrison, Morgan, Muskingum, Noble and Tuscarawas). The Department and Muskingum Valley Educational Service Center works with East Central Ohio Educational Service Center, Ohio Valley Educational Service Center, Ohio University and community mental health providers to implement recruitment and retainment strategies to increase the number of mental health professionals in the project counties.
    • For more information about eligibility or job openings, please visit Muskingum Valley Educational Service Center’s Careers webpage. If you are a school or district in the 7 counties and interested in learning more about eligibility or participation in the grant, contact Scott Eldredge with questions.
  • Project AWARE: Ohio continues to prioritize mental health and wellness in K-12 schools with a new $1.2 million grant to advance Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness And Resiliency in Education). The grant will help schools increase their capacity to provide mental health services and support by placing dedicated Behavioral Health and Wellness Coordinators in schools around the state and strengthen statewide resources. Coordinators have already been strategically placed in schools in 13 Ohio counties: Allen, Belmont, Champaign, Coshocton, Cuyahoga, Hamilton, Henry, Jackson, Lorain, Meigs, Montgomery, Morrow and Portage.

    For questions or more information, please contact Deb Robison, Director of Outreach and Collaboration, School-Based Center of Excellence for Prevention & Intervention.

  • School-Based Telehealth Services in Rural Ohio Project: The School-Based Telehealth Services in Rural Ohio Project is an initiative to address the lack of high-speed internet across Muskingum Valley and the Switzerland of Ohio Local School District by improving broadband connectivity and presenting additional ways for students to utilize telehealth to access behavioral health and other critical school-based health services. The project team consists of state representatives from the Ohio departments of Education, Medicaid, Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Governor’s Office along with local representatives from Muskingum Valley Educational Service Center.
  • Trauma Informed Schools
  • Supporting School Wellness Toolkit
  • Center for Disease Control: Learn About Children’s Mental Health
  • Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration: How to Talk About Mental Health

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Professional Development

School staff can learn more about skills, implementation strategies and current trends through trainings below:

  • Ohio Department of Education and Workforce Mental Health and Trauma Training Library: The library contains videos from Department-led conferences and webinars to support ongoing education on topics such as Trauma-sensitive Schools, Classroom Strategies for Supporting Students, School Wellness, Safety and more. The library currently highlights sessions from the 2022 Children’s Mental Health and Resiliency Conference led by Ohio’s schools and community partners to showcase best practices and partnerships. The Department will update the page as additional trainings become available. 
  • Advancing Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems: This resource synthesizes the knowledge and guidance of over 75 experts nationally to help guide local, state, and national efforts to strengthen school mental health efforts and to start to understand and bring consensus to the quality domains of school mental health. 
  • Mental Health Technology Transfer Center Network: Funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the MHTTC Network includes 10 Regional Centers to support evidence-based resource development and dissemination, training and technical assistance, and workforce development for the mental health field.
  • Classroom WISE: Training to assist K-12 educators in supporting the mental health of students in the classroom and offers evidence-based strategies and skills to engage and support students experiencing adversity and distress.

Last Modified: 8/26/2024 2:09:26 PM