Elementary School Mental Health Program
Within our hospital district, as well as all areas across the country, many children are at-risk of having problems in school due to prior or ongoing trauma in their lives. These experiences affect their ability to participate and thrive in the academic setting. Many of these students do not have the skill set to overcome these issues because they don’t have access to mental health counseling. Arlington Public Schools (APS) and Stilly Valley Health Connections have been working together to find a way to provide mental health counseling to elementary school students within the school district.
One program we introduced is to bring mental health therapists into the elementary schools to meet with selected students on a routine basis. In addition to providing mental health sessions during the school day, the mental health therapists also see students and their families either before or after school hours as needed. The therapists may also provide training for the school staff on how to respond to or avert certain behaviors by the students. The therapists are paid either through directly billing the student’s insurance or by grant funding obtained by Stilly Valley Health Connections.
2017/2018 School Year
With grants awarded by the Cascade Valley Health Foundation and the Rotary Club of Arlington, this pilot program started in April 2018 at Eagle Creek Elementary School and continued into the summer months.
- 6 students participated
- 50 counseling sessions were provided
- Within one month, improvement with socialization, coping techniques and problem solving were noted behavior modifications in the participants
2018/2019 School Year
With the success with the pilot program, APS and Stilly Valley Health Connections plan to continue and expand the program into the current school year. Counseling will continue with one day a week at Eagle Creek and adding another day at a different school. APS estimates there are at least 60 children that could benefit from mental health counseling. Stilly Valley Health Connections is seeking both grant funding as well as other mental health therapists to help fund and grow the program.
Future goals
Stilly Valley Health Connections would like to provide therapists at all the elementary schools in Arlington, as well as possibly offer sessions to the Darrington School District sometime in the next few years.
If you are interested in learning more about this program, please contact Ardis Schmiege at 360.548.3357 or Ardis@SNOCOPHD3.org.
