The Mental Health Continuum Initiative (MHC) is a school and community-based program designed to build a stronger continuum of care to improve the provision of mental health services to students and families. MHC is a cross-agency partnership between NYC Public Schools, NYC Health + Hospitals, and the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC Health Department).
Schools participating in this initiative will receive expanded, appropriate, and timely care for students struggling with mental health challenges, through a culturally responsive and family-centered approach, via virtual and in-person sessions from school, home, and NYC Health + Hospitals clinics. MHC is currently being rolled out across 50 participating schools, including 5 District 75 schools. All participating schools are in the South Bronx and Central Brooklyn.
The MHC is an advocate-initiated project recommended by over 200 organizations, the City Council, and the City Comptroller that seeks to build a stronger continuum of mental health care within schools and to create more effective linkages between school-and community-based mental health support structures. The funding for this initiative began in FY 2022 with an initial $5 million investment, and agencies are currently advocating for baseline funding to sustain this key program moving forward.
Participating schools receive funding to develop the capacity of their staff to leverage a whole-school collaborative problem-solving approach to address the behavioral, social, emotional, and mental health needs of their students. MHC partner schools will also receive funding to support the establishment or enhancement of school-based mental health facilities. These funds are intended to ensure that each school can offer students and families a welcoming, affirming, and culturally responsive environment during the provision of mental health services.
The School Mental Health unit in the Office of School Health will collaborate in partnership with NYC Health + Hospitals regarding the implementation of clinical mental health supports for participating schools. School Mental Health is responsible for the facilitation and oversight of all CBO/School Mental Health partnerships and ensures quality school-based access to mental health services that meet the non-mandated counseling and support needs of school communities across NYC Public Schools as they are agreed upon and intended.
Five NYC Health + Hospitals Child and Adolescent Clinics are participating. Enhanced dedicated staffing at these clinics will allow for timely access to mental health supports with a range of services, including onsite school-based services, expedited clinic appointments, urgent care, and tele-video visits. Students and their families will also have access to the full range of mental health services available in the clinic sites. The goal is to provide meaningful and stable connections between school staff, who know their students and families’ best, and mental health service providers committed to serving their local communities.
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is available to support school leaders, staff, and students with mental health inquiries, including crisis counseling, suicide prevention, information and referrals to behavioral health services, and access to mobile crisis teams. A Children’s Mobile Crisis Team (CMCT) is made up of behavioral health professionals, such as social workers and peer advocates, and is designed to reduce 911 calls, as well as the number of children referred to psychiatric emergency rooms, and hospitalizations. The CMCT provides short-term therapeutic crisis response to children while connecting them to long-term mental health supports such as psychiatry, therapy, and case management services. The services are provided where the child is experiencing a crisis, such as the child’s school or the family’s home.
Two Categories of support IN A SCHOOL
From the Mental Health Continuum Program Team
NYC Public Schools Supports
School Social Workers
Guidance Counselors
Student Service Managers
Bridging the Gap Social Workers
Substance Abuse Prevention and Intervention Specialists (SAPIS)
Psychologists
Borough/Citywide Office Social Work Supervisors
Central Crisis Support Team
Mental Health Service Partnerships
School Based Mental Health Clinics (SBMHC)
School Based Healthcare Centers (SBHC) with Mental Health
Children’s Mobile Crisis Teams (CMCT)
The Office of School Health, School Mental Health Program (SMH) is a joint unit within the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and NYC Public Schools. Research shows that 75% of children enrolled in mental health services access them onsite in their school. Schools are a natural gateway to address mental health concerns that otherwise go untreated. School mental health services are associated with an increase in attendance, graduation rates and academic achievement.
EXPERTISE: Experts in simplifying the complex New York City (NYC) mental health system, we shape, inform, and create mental health services on behalf of NYC schools.
SERVICES: Our mental health experts collaborate with schools to connect them with the appropriate providers offering students, educators and families a range of mental health interventions needed within a given school. Informed by data we:
Facilitate individualized school mental health assessments and planning using a three-tiered public health model.
Offer expert knowledge of evidence-based practices and mental health interventions for children and youth.
Advise, advocate and consult across the greater children’s mental health system (City, State and National Levels).
Guide the implementation, integration and coordination of mental health services with community-based mental health providers and community-based organizations.
Develop strategic partnerships to empower, build capacity and reduce stigma.
Increase access to quality mental health services either onsite or through strong linkages with community-based organizations.
SCHOOL MENTAL HEALTH STAFF:A School Mental Health Manager facilitates and manages partnership(s) with local mental health provider(s), community-based organizations (CBOs) and schools. The Manager, utilizing data and mental health content expertise, assesses the school environment and determines the appropriate level of mental health needs in a school. School Mental Health Managers work across boroughs in many NYC public schools, including Mental Health Continuum schools.
Managers create work plans to highlight the services being implemented to meet the individualized needs of a school. Service provision is monitored for quality and relevance as the school establishes an environment that is able to address the various mental health needs that may emerge. Additionally, Managers advocate for the school’s needs through budget negotiations and oversight.
School Mental Health Managers also support schools without contracted mental health monies. SMH staff in these schools build relationships with CBOs within the community as well as supplement some universal and selective services. Managers provide individualized mental health planning, facilitate trainings, strengthen referral pathways, promote resources and provide expert consultation surrounding evidence-based practices and other mental health services.
PARTNERSHIPS: Partnerships and external collaborations are forged with organizations that fit with the goals of School Mental Health.
