Mental Health Matters

Schools are filled with good ideas. Each year, new initiatives promise to improve student well-being, strengthen staff resilience, and create more connected learning environments. But ideas alone don’t create impact—implementation does. When strategies are only introduced during professional development or implemented inconsistently, even the best intentions can lose momentum, leaving staff feeling overwhelmed and students seeing little change.

Research on school-based mental health and social-emotional learning consistently shows that how an initiative is implemented matters as much as what is implemented. Programs delivered with fidelity—meaning they’re carried out as designed, with consistent practice and ongoing coaching and support—lead to measurable gains in student engagement, emotional regulation, and academic success. They also contribute to a healthier school climate and reduced staff burnout, as teams experience the stability and clarity that comes from shared routines and expectations.

Strong implementation doesn’t mean doing everything at once—it means doing what you've selected well. Schools that use data to narrow their focus, invest in staff learning and coaching, and monitor progress over time see deeper and more sustainable results. Fidelity turns promising ideas into everyday habits that support the mental health and wellness of both students and the adults who serve them.

LGBTQ+ students are still at disproportionate risk for persistent bullying, harassment, and victimization. In response to requests from school districts across Michigan, the MDE LGBTQ+ Students Project staff created a suite of online professional development workshops to build the capacity of schools to provide a safe, supportive, and inclusive culture and climate where all students can thrive. The MDE LGBTQ+ Students Project is honored to partner with school districts and parents to make these highly requested workshops available to school staff for the 2025-26 school year.

Use this link to learn more about and register for session offerings.

Kent ISD is excited to invite you to the fourth annual Listen. Learn. Lead. - State of the Student event on Monday, November 17, at Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park.

Join education and community leaders for a morning of listening and learning through conversation with high school students. Hear about their school experiences, their challenges, and what matters most to them during this event led by our Student Leadership Community.

November 17 | 9:00 a.m.-11 a.m.

Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park

1000 East Beltline NE, Grand Rapids

Breakfast included

RSVPs required – Register online to reserve your seat.

We hope you’ll join us!

Grand Rapids is getting a major boost in pediatric mental health care this March, as Pine Rest opens their Pediatric Center for Behavioral Health. The center will provide 66 new inpatient beds, specialty programs—including a dedicated Neurodevelopmental Disorders Unit—and same-day psychiatric assessments, all for children and adolescents.

If you’re a school-based mental health practitioner and want a sneak peek of the center before it opens, let us know your interest using this form. Don’t miss this opportunity to see the innovative space designed to support children and families!

Interested in learning more about Tier 2 Supports? Already offering them, but they feel clunky or ineffective? It might be time for a system tune-up!

Midwest PBIS has developed a helpful Implementation Workbook based on the Tier 2 TFI. While it doesn’t replace formal Tier 2 training, this resource—used alongside the Getting Ready for Tier 2 slide deck—can help teams assess their current systems and identify meaningful next steps for growth.

In restorative practices, the social discipline window helps us think about how adults respond to student behavior along two dimensions: the level of control and the level of support. When we are too controlling without support, we punish; when we are overly permissive without guidance, we neglect. The sweet spot—“do with”—is high support paired with high guidance, where adults coach, teach, and guide students toward positive choices rather than rescuing or punishing.

This approach is critical for mental health and social-emotional growth. When students are guided with intention, they develop skills, self-regulation, and resilience. When adults act for students—solving problems or enforcing rules without engagement—students miss opportunities to learn and staff carry extra stress.

To “do with” students:

• Ask first. Invite students into problem-solving: “What’s your plan?”

• Coach, don’t fix. Guide reflection on choices and consequences.

• Set expectations with empathy. Rules matter, and so does support.

• Model skills. Show strategies like calming or conflict resolution.

• Debrief together. Talk through what worked and what can improve.

By shifting from rescuer or enforcer to coach, adults create learning moments that strengthen relationships, build student autonomy, and promote a healthier school climate for all.

Stories help students see emotions, relationships, and choices in action—making books a natural fit for social-emotional learning. And lucky for us, TRAILS has done some heavy lifting!

Staff at TRAILS to Wellness have compiled Elementary and Middle/High SEL Booklists, inclusive of common classroom reads aligned to MDE's SEL Competencies. Whether you’re reading picture books or novels, a few intentional questions can turn any story into an SEL lesson:

• Self-Awareness: “How does the character feel in this part of the story?"

• Self-Management: "What strategies does the character use to handle their emotions or challenges?

• Social Awareness: “How does this character show understanding or care for others?

• Relationship Skills: "What makes this relationship stronger or weaker?"

• Responsible Decision-Making: “What choices did the character face, and what were the outcomes?”

A short reflection or class discussion helps students connect the story’s lesson to their own lives. When teachers make these links explicit, books become powerful tools for building empathy, self-regulation, and stronger classroom communities!

If you aren't already connected, I'm excited to introduce you to the work of Robyn Gobbel!

Robyn translates the complex science of the Relational Neurosciences (that’s just fancy talk for the parts of the brain that keep us in connection with ourselves and everyone else) for helpers, healers, educators, and parents and makes it practical, useful, ultimately- life changing. A student once described her as “Neuroscience with heart…wrapped in glitter and fun!” And, fortunately, Robyn has assembled a few of her podcast episodes into a neat Trauma Informed Schools package, just for folks like us!

Dig in and enjoy!

If you're using MiPSE to document Threat Assessments, please take note! Updates have been made to the threat assessment screener in MiPSE. Please see the Guide to Changes to review the updates in full.

Additionally, updates to the Intervention and Monitoring plan are underway:

• The Meeting Date language now reads: Intervention and Monitoring Plan Date
• To complete a reassessment of the Intervention and Monitoring Plan, please open the plan to be reviewed, Select More... and choose the Create a Reassess of This Document

Upon creating the Revision:

• The Intervention and Monitoring Plan Date will not populate - Instead a Reassessment and Review Date box will be provided - Please use the calendar feature to fill in
• Language under the Progress Update has been updated: Provide information/data related to effectiveness of current strategies listed in intervention & monitoring plan. Have there been any new concerns about targeted violence? If yes, explain.
• The Analyze Information section and 13 questions have been retired and are no longer editable. In order to reassess risk for targeted violence, teams will now consider the following:
• Is the management plan having the intended effect?
• Are there any new problems?
• Does the person pose a threat of violence to others? Put another way, does the person appear to be on a pathway to violence or is otherwise preparing to engage in violence?

For additional information about resources included in this Newsletter or with other questions or concerns, please contact Chelsea Kittridge-Farrell, Mental Health & Behavior Intervention Consultant.