Early adolescents entering middle school are at a pivotal developmental phase as they become less dependent on parents/guardians and seek greater autonomy while encountering a complexity of social demands requiring them to regulate their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors to achieve academic and social success. Yet, students who receive services…

This manuscript provides a detailed examination of comprehensive school-based dialectical behavior therapy (CSB-DBT) as a critical component to the DBT services continuum provided in schools. Because suicide is the second leading cause of death among adolescents along with increased prevalence of self-harming behavior, schools often find…

Healthcare services outside of school impact the likelihood of receiving a school-based special education classification and services. Using Massachusetts administrative data on public school students, this paper employs difference-in-differences to examine the impacts of expanded Medicaid coverage for mental and behavioral healthcare brought by…

In the current climate of increasing fiscal and clinical accountability, information is required about overall program effectiveness using clinical data. These requests present a challenge for programs utilizing single-subject data due to the use of highly individualized behavior plans and behavioral monitoring. Subsequently, the diversity of the…

In preparing children to deal with life in an increasingly complex society, it is important that schools devote attention to well-organised and theoretically sound programmes employing a preventive approach to mental health. Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT), as indicated in its name, incorporates changes to thought processes and…

Background: The effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) in inner city schools, when delivered by novice CBT clinicians, and compared to usual care (UC), is unknown. Objective: This pilot study addressed this issue by comparing a modular CBT for anxiety disorders to UC in a sample of 32 volunteer youth (mean age 10.28 years, 63%…

The academic and social challenges facing public schools are enormous. For example, the pressure to meet the demands of the current high-stakes testing environment and reach adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals has arguably never been greater (Luna & Turner, 2001; Sanders, 2003). The energy devoted to academics has supplanted the little time spent…

This fact sheet is intended to provide a snapshot of the current issues surrounding dropout factors among students who are identified with emotional disturbance, as well as to provide mental health resources that may assist this population to remain in high school. The statistics presented in this document highlight both the importance of…

The first of two booklets on the TOPS Program (Teaching Outreach Prevention School), a school/mental health cooperative project, describes the operation of group work for elementary aged children with emotional and behavioral problems. Goals are said to include increasing the students' feelings of acceptance, caring, and support as well as…

The second of two reports on the TOPS Program (Teaching Outreach Prevention School), a group work approach for emotionally disturbed elementary students, describes TOPS' parent training and support groups. Reasons for parent groups are discussed, particularly for parents of children with emotional handicaps. Techniques for motivating parents are…

This issue of "Residential Group Care Quarterly" contains the following articles: (1) "Achieving Better Outcomes for Children and Families: Reducing the Use of Restraint and Seclusion" (Katherine Johnson); (2) "STAR Project Outcomes" (Nancy Campbell); (3) "The Devereux Glenholme School" (Mary Guilfoile); (4) "Lessons Learned in the Reduction of…

This paper describes a California-based interagency program that combines mental health, educational, and probation services in an effort to reduce juvenile recidivism. The program provides interagency services at three therapeutic high schools and one juvenile facility with the goal of keeping minors at home and thereby reducing recidivism by…

This article describes a family-centered wraparound project developed to meet the needs of elementary children with severe emotional and behavioral disorders. It discusses the role of the behavioral support team and the key roles of the principal and the teacher as the creators of cultural competence. Tips for teachers are provided. (Contains…

This collection of papers describes the interagency collaboration of Georgia agencies that serve students with emotional and behavior disorders (EBD). The first paper, "Overview and State Perspective" (P. Paulette Bragg and Phillip H. Pickens), describes the problems facing Georgia by placing students with EBD in state hospitals, private…

This report discusses a study that examined clinical outcomes for 145 children (ages 5-17) with severe emotional disturbances attending a Children's Behavior Therapy Unit (CBTU) day treatment program across several locations. Children are referred to CBTU following failed placement with the respective school districts in less-restrictive settings,…