Mental Health Information

School counselors provide specific skills and learning opportunities in the areas of academic achievement, career, and personal/social development. Please reach out to our School Counselor for any information for your student.

 Sarah Haidar

Orange River Elementary School Counselor

Sarah Haidar

239-694-1258

Email:  [email protected]
 
Why is mental health important to education?
Mental health is directly related to children’s learning and development. It encompasses or intersects with interpersonal relationships, social-emotional skills, behavior, learning, academic motivation, certain disabilities, mental illness, crisis prevention and response, school safety and substance abuse. Each of these issues affects not only the success and well-being of the individual student but also the school climate and outcomes for all students.

What are school-based mental health services?
School-based mental health services include a broad spectrum of assessment, prevention, intervention, postvention, counseling, consultation, and referral activities and services. These services are essential to a school’s ability to ensure a safe and healthy learning environment for all students, address classroom behavior and discipline, promote students’ academic success, prevent and respond to crisis, support students’ social-emotional needs, identify and respond to a serious mental health problem, and support and partner with at-risk families. Ideally, school-based services dovetail with community-based services so that children and youth receive the support they need in a seamless, coordinated, and comprehensive system of care.

School Mental Health Teams
School mental health teams (SMHT) are multi-disciplinary teams that will meet regularly (weekly preferred) to discuss students that have been identified with social-emotional or mental health concerns. The team uses data-based decision making to support student mental health through selective and indicated interventions. Well-functioning school mental health teams facilitate the maximum impact of a comprehensive school mental health system. They serve as the organizing structure for a tiered system of school mental health supports and services. High functioning teams capitalize on the multi-disciplinary resources within a school and community to achieve the greatest outcomes for students, families, and the school community.

District Mental Health and Wellness Portal