Role of Mental Health Services in Promoting Safe and Secure Schools

• NCJ Number: 229356
• Date Published: September 2007
• Length: 72 pages
• Agencies: OJJDP-Sponsored
• Award: Hamilton Fish Institute on School and Community Violence

Annotation

This guide describes the critical role of the mental health system for promoting and maintaining safe schools, discusses the emerging concept of family-driven care, and a review of Federal initiatives supporting the implementation of school-base mental health services.

Abstract

A growing body of research describes a convincing relationship between the academic and emotional functioning of children and the effectiveness of schools in addressing this relationship, and in a climate of increasing aggression and violence, the importance of behavior and developmental science is certain. To assist schools in their safety efforts the Hamilton Fish Institute on School and Community Violence and the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory with support from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) revised a series of guidebooks. The guidebooks are intended to build a foundation of information to assist schools and school districts in developing safe learning environments. The guidebooks provide local school districts with information and resources that support comprehensive safe school planning efforts. This guidebook explores the role of mental health services in developing and maintaining safe schools. The guide provides an overview of research-based school mental health models and offers guidance for school personnel and others on implementing mental health-related services, including the role that Federal, State, and district policies play and the need for community involvement. Tables, figures, and appendixes A-C