Mental health is focus of grant
$9M to benefit state’s schools
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration — a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services — has awarded the Arkansas Department of Education a $9 million grant to develop and support school-based mental health programs.
The state agency will receive about $1.8 million each year for five years to fund the Advancing Wellness and Resilience in Education program.
That education program will allow for the development of comprehensive school mental-health programs in three pilot locations: Texarkana School District, Marvell-Elaine School District and Ozarks Unlimited Resource Educational Services Cooperative, which is based in Harrison.
Additionally, the program is to promote a safe and supportive school environment and allow for the establishment of a statewide infrastructure of support and training for school personnel in the Mental Health First Aid, Trauma Informed Schools and Adverse Childhood Experiences programs and initiatives.
“This grant comes at an especially significant time as we are studying ways to keep our students safe at school,” said Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who in March appointed a School Safety Commission of educators, law enforcement and mental health professionals.
“The money will allow the Education Department to seek training for educators that will equip them to recognize and address issues of substance abuse and mental health in schools,” Hutchinson said.
“This awareness is essential to keeping our schools safe. We must take the administrative load off of school counselors so that they are free to interact with students and to counsel those in need of that attention. This is one of the most important things we can do to ensure that our schools are as secure as we can make them.”
The grant will allow the state Education Department to develop a formal partnership with the Arkansas Department of Human Services’ Behavioral Health Services Division to implement the goals and objectives of the grant.
The agency will collaborate with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Arkansas Foundation for Medical Care, Arkansas State University at Jonesboro’s Center for Community Engagement and Office of Behavioral Research and Evaluation, National Council for Behavioral Health and Center for School Mental Health at the University of Maryland to support the implementation.