Thursday, November 21, 2024
11/21/2024
Populations(s) to be Served: This project will (1) increase awareness of mental health issues among school-aged youth, (2) provide training to school staff and community members on identifying signs and symptoms of mental health concerns in school-aged youth, and (3) connect school-aged youth with mental health concerns and their families to the necessary supports. This project partnership is between Georgia’s Department of Education (GaDOE; State Education Agency [SEA]) and Georgia’s Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD; State Mental Health Agency [SMHA]). This project will increase access to mental health awareness and supports for students in three local education agencies (LEA): Bibb County, Hall County, and Houston County. Student enrollment within the three LEAs for 2019-2020 was: Bibb - 25,998; Hall - 28,732; and Houston – 31,656. The LEAs are racially and ethnically diverse (Bibb –73% Black, 17% White; Hall –5% Black, 48% White, with 44% identifying as Hispanic; Houston – 40% Black, 42% White, 18% other). In Hall, 28% of students are English Learners. In Hall and Houston, 14% of students and in Bibb 11% of students are classified as students with disabilities. Across the LEAs, 12% of students reported seriously considering suicide on the 2019 Georgia Student Health Survey and 6% reported attempting suicide in the past year; 5,233 students ages 9-17 have serious emotional disturbance. Strategies/Interventions: Each LEA will implement multiple evidence-based practices (EBP) that will create safe and secure schools and promote the mental health of students. Three of the EBPs implemented through this project include Sources of Strength, Life Space Crisis Intervention, and Youth Mental Health First Aid. In addition, each LEA will choose from a menu of universal EBPs to implement school-wide to ensure that all classrooms in the LEAs are promoting mental wellness for all students. Finally, through the partnership between the GaDOE and DBHDD, each LEA will have mental health clinicians provide school-based, clinical support to students. Project Goals and Measurable Objectives: There are 8 goals and 28 objectives for this project. Goal 1: Increase access to mental health services for youth. Goal 2: Develop school-based mental health programs staffed by mental health clinicians. Goal 3: Conduct outreach and engagement with youth and their families to promote positive mental health. Goal 4: Connect families, schools, communities to each other to increase involvement in planning wellness events. Goal 5: Help school-aged youth develop skills to promote resilience and prevent mental health disorders. Goal 6: Equip schools to immediately respond to needs of youth exhibiting severe psychological distress. Goal 7: Develop an infrastructure to sustain and expand mental health services when federal funding ends. Goal 8: Implement a workforce training plan to increase youth mental health literacy of staff, parents, and other adults. The grant funds will serve 86,386 students in Year 1 and 100,000 unduplicated students over the course of the grant.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).
