As students continue to grapple with their mental health in the aftermath of pandemic disruptions, the National Association of Secondary School Principals’ (NASSP) Sept. 13 webinar, “Be Well: Centering Mental Health in Schools,” offered a variety of resources available to school leaders to support their communities.
Research has proven that feeling mentally and emotionally safe on-campus plays a significant role in a young person’s ability to thrive academically. Lindsay Burton of the Department of Homeland Security said that schools are critical partners in supporting youth mental health, and ensuring staff acquires mental health literacy is key.
At the federal level, Burton said resources like SchoolSafety.gov can provide information and recommendations on safety topics including bullying and cyberbullying, mental health, school climate, child exploitation and more. More specific resources are available under the main topic. For example, under the umbrella of mental health are resources on school-based mental health services, substance use, suicide management, conduct issues, at-risk children and related training materials.
The site also includes a grants finder tool to aid local educational agencies in finding applicable funding opportunities.
Other federal resources discussed include the following reports and toolkits:
- Protecting Youth Mental Health
- Supporting Child and Student Social, Emotional, Behavioral, and Mental Health Needs
- Supporting Mental Health via Technology
- Ready, Set, Go, Review: Screening for Behavioral Health Risk in Schools
- School Health Assessment and Performance Evaluation (SHAPE) System
- Toolkit for Schools: Engaging Parents to Support Mental Health and Emotional Well-being
- How to Talk About Mental Health: For Educators
Additionally, nonprofits including the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) and Digital4Good shared free offerings.
CASEL:
Digital4Good
- Social media emergency plan, includes a social media risk assessment, investigation checklists, administrative letter templates, and crisis response plan and incident report forms
- Emotional first-aid kit
- Digital Media Challenges for families
- Online Dating Myths for Parents fact sheet
