School-based Mental Health Programs Provided by Franciscan Children’s

According to the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, up to one in five children in the U.S. experience a mental health disorder every year. Symptoms often begin in early childhood, though some may develop during the teenage years.

In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, Together for Mental Health, check out our incredible school-based mental health programs at Franciscan Children’s:

Kids Healthy Minds Initiative (KHMI)

Written by: Director of Kids Healthy Minds Initiative, Carol Nash

Kids Healthy Minds Initiative (KHMI) is a mental health education program designed to support school staff in the early detection and intervention of students’ mental health problems before they reach the crisis stage. By working together to give students the necessary supports they need to succeed, we hope to prevent the negative consequences of undiagnosed or unresolved mental health problems.

KHMI is offered to Catholic Schools throughout the Archdiocese of Boston with a focus on elementary schools (kindergarten through eighth grade) that have limited or no mental health resources. Our program offers professional development workshops for school staff, education sessions for students and parents and a licensed mental health counselor two hours per week for consultation with faculty, individual students, or student groups.

During a typical day, a KHMI mental health counselor will link with two to three elementary schools on Zoom for about two hours each. During the allotted time, the counselor is available to consult with teachers, individual students/student groups or parents to address academic, social, emotional or behavioral problems. If it is possible to address the problem in school, the counselor will work with the teacher directly to identify and implement interventions intended to address the students’ or class-wide problem.  For crises or issues requiring additional mental health support, the counselor will assist with a referral.

There are currently several different education workshops available to our KHMI schools which include:

• • The Kids Mental Health Crisis: Designed to help participants understand the mental health problems commonly experienced by school-aged children, how to detect these problems early and build resilience
  • Providing Support in Times of Uncertainty: Designed to help participants understand the emotional reactions that youth are experiencing due to the pandemic, tips on what to do in the classroom/home to help all students adjust, feel safer and less stressed, and the importance of developing safe, stable, and nurturing relationships
  • Coping through Crisis: Designed to help participants learn how to care for themselves, to put their own oxygen mask on first before trying to help anyone else

There are also new workshops being developed, including:

• • to help students understand their own mental health with an emphasis on managing stress and anxieties
  • to help reduce the stigma surrounding mental health illnesses by educating students and faculty on the myths and realities of mental illness and addressing preexisting attitudes

An interesting fact about the KHMI program is that it is completely funded through grants.

Children’s Wellness Initiative (CWI)

Written by Assistant Director of Behavioral Health Services, Dr. Kelly Karl

The Children’s Wellness Initiative (CWI) program currently provides school-based mental health services in eleven Boston-area schools. CWI social workers provide youth and their parents access to quality counseling services, including crisis intervention and psychiatric evaluation as needed. Providing therapeutic services in the schools is truly about access, as many of the children seen by our CWI clinicians would not otherwise be able to receive mental health services. The services provided by CWI clinicians are provided year-round. When the school year ends, CWI social workers continue to provide services to clients in both the community and at home. Our CWI clinicians see a high level of acuity, as well as trauma, and are an invaluable resource to the community.

A unique aspect of the CWI program is that our full-time presence allows CWI social workers to become fully integrated into the fabric of each school.  As a result, they are also able to support school staff when facing the impacts emotional distress and trauma can have on a child’s academic achievement and overall well-being.