Anyone who works in a school setting keenly feels the impact of COVID-19 on youth and families. They can remember the exhaustion and dysfunction that rippled out during the pandemic, and they can still see it today. The School Behavioral Health Academy (SBHA) responded to the youth mental health crisis by creating an online learning management…

This article is the second in a series addressing comprehensive suicide prevention programming in the school context. In this article, the authors discuss the importance of the student voice and the value of data collection in the development of this type of crisis prevention, intervention, and postvention. In the articles that follow this one,…

Apni Shala (Hindi for Our School) is a nonprofit educational foundation located in Mumbai, India. It was set up in 2013 to promote mental health skill development in children in local elementary schools. The goals of the program include increasing emotional literacy of children within a culturally relevant framework and destigmatizing mental…

February 14 marked the 1-year anniversary of the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and April 20 marks the 20th anniversary of the tragedy at Columbine. Much progress has been made over the last 20 years in the understanding of threat assessment, crisis preparedness, and the importance of increasing…

At the request of President Trump in the aftermath of the Parkland shooting, a Federal Commission on School Safety was assembled to provide meaningful and actionable recommendations to maintain student safety in schools. This article summarizes the overarching points of the Commission's report and shares concerns raised the National Association of…

Early childhood, defined as infancy through age 5 years, is a critical period and serves as the foundation for development throughout the life span. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in July 2015, there were almost 20 million children ages birth to 5 years. The physical health of infants and young children is addressed and monitored through…

Schools and communities continually strive to develop more effective methods of educating children and youth about mental health and how to access available resources. Despite this apparent need, several barriers prevent youth from engaging in discussion and taking action. Young people are of special concern since three fourths of all mental…

As professionals who often know the most about psychology in school settings and education in clinical settings and because of the importance of addressing both academic and mental health needs in anxious youth, school psychologists are uniquely positioned to assist anxious students. School psychologists possess a dynamic skill set that can be…

By the end of last school year, Liz Angoff was frustrated, defeated, and ready to quit. She had been working as a school psychologist in a large urban public school district for 12 years and the gravity of the issues, coupled with the scarcity of resources, had taken its toll. She decided to flee the country in search of perspective, and applied…

Approximately 20% of children in the United States experience significant mental, emotional, or behavioral symptoms that would qualify them for a psychiatric diagnosis (Burns et al., 1995; Costello et al., 2003). Unfortunately, only 15%-30% of these children receive any type of help or support (Ringel & Sturm, 2001; United States Public Health…

The tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown, CT (USA) has brought the conversation about how to reduce violence, make schools safer, improve school climate, and increase access to mental health services to the forefront of the national conversation. Advocating for comprehensive initiatives to address school safety, school climate, and…

May is National Mental Health Awareness Month. This is a great time to highlight the importance of mental wellness and school-based mental health services to children's positive learning and development. There is heightened urgency to the imperative to advance school-based mental health and school psychologists' expertise as essential to the…

Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may experience educational difficulties that warrant an evaluation to determine whether they are eligible to receive services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). As with any disorder, legal disputes about eligibility sometimes arise between parents and school…

The estimated prevalence of one or more mental health disorders among children and adolescents between the ages of 9 and 17 is 21% (Satcher, 2001). Similarly, research by Greenberg et al., (2003) estimated that 20% of school-age youth experience mental health problems during the course of any school year. Despite these high prevalence rates, the…

The focus on RTI and evidence-based interventions in school psychology is heavily concentrated at the moment on academic skills and progress and less on mental health or social-emotional development. The emphasis is understandable given the demands of NCLB and the wisdom of tackling more measurable, manageable, academic skills first. School…