Sunday, November 24, 2024
11/24/2024
PROJECT ABSTRACT - LA AWARE 2 LA AWARE 2 is a collaborative effort of the Louisiana Department of Education, the Louisiana Department of Health- Office of Behavioral Health, the Community Project Managers the in the current AWARE-SEA grant and the LSU-Social Research and Evaluation Center AWARE Team. The purpose of LA AWARE 2 is to expand and enhance mental health services in the three partner school systems: Avoyelles, Natchitoches, and Tangipahoa. These three school systems were selected due to high percentages of schools identified as Urgent Intervention Required-Discipline as the result of their high percentages of out-of-school suspension that have been more than two times greater than the national average, specifically for student subgroups disproportionally impacted by exclusionary discipline practices. All three school systems are designated as rural districts and the percentages of students identified as economically disadvantaged exceed the state average. The three systems represent the northwest, central and eastern geographical regions of our state. The foundation for La AWARE 2 is the incorporation of trauma informed practices in schools promote an understanding of the impact of current and past experiences on the school-aged youth’s current behavior and mental health. This practice promotes positive, pro-active strategies to increase and enhance student engagement which support the development of overall mental health. The LA AWARE 2 model is based on the multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) framework which promotes increasing awareness of mental health issues through education at the lowest level to providing more intensive direct services for school-aged youth at the highest level of need. The LA AWARE 2 will also use evidence-based Social-Emotional-Learning (SEL) curricula and data based decision making to provide a clear framework to address mental health and behavior issues while promoting a healthy school climate and culture. The goals of the LA AWARE 2 are: (1) Increase awareness of mental health issues impacting students and families through a comprehensive workforce development training plan to develop and support infrastructure development in the three partner school systems and participating schools;(2) Establish a network of mental health providers to increase student and family access to services in the school and community; (3) Increase the partner school systems and families’ ability to identify students that may be experiencing mental health issues that are impacting their success and well-being in the school, home and community; (4) Ensure the three partner school systems are providing direct services to students with mental health needs and their families no later than January 30, 2022; and (5) Evaluate the overall impact of LA AWARE 2 through the implementation of the performance assessment and data collection process that includes all required components. The objectives to accomplish these goals include: the development and implementation of a comprehensive workforce development training plan at the state and local levels; promote increased collaboration between the local school systems and the mental health provider organizations; contracting with partner university to enhance and expand the data collection system and performance measurement system used in the current AWARE-SEA grant and provide assistance and training to the three partner school systems to ensure project goals are implemented with fidelity. Funds from this project will be allocated to the three partner school systems to increase the number of mental health provider and mental health services available to students. During Year 1 of the project, 1024 students requiring brief interventions and/or more intensive mental health services with an estimated increase of .25% annually for a total of 2048 students overall.
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).
