In Woodbury, school officials discovered a barrier to student growth was families’ difficulty in accessing community-based mental health services. For some families, scheduling problems or transportation issues made it impossible to access those important services.
As a result, the district created a partnership with a local mental health agency, in which counselors come on-site to provide traditional individual and family counseling services during the school day, within school facilities. Psychiatric services have also been contracted, so students can receive medication from a board-certified psychiatrist when appropriate.
The intervention strategy is used primarily as a pre-referral strategy for students, prior to referral to the child study team. In addition, the program serves in-district students attending the Behavioral Disability Program.
Information
Contact: Dr. Jeffrey W. Adams, director of special services, [email protected]
Submitted by district through a survey conducted for NJSBA’s 2014 report, Special Education: A Service, Not a Place