Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Student Mental Health topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Novi to add Care Solace navigation service and buy EduClimber to tighten MTSS supports
Summary
District leaders presented a plan to onboard Care Solace — a 24/7 mental-health navigation service — and approved a three‑year purchase of the EduClimber MTSS data platform to centralize student support information.
Novi Community School District officials told the board on the May meeting that the district will onboard Care Solace, a web-based care-navigation service for families and staff, and purchased the EduClimber MTSS data platform in a 3-year contract for $132,463.
The programs are intended to work together inside the district’s multi-tiered system of support (MTSS). Rosalie Johnson, identified in the meeting as the district’s director of mental health and wellness, said Care Solace is a tier‑3 resource that provides a warm‑handoff referral process, a “care companion” who screens and matches families with providers from a database of more than 600,000 verified providers, and 24/7 access in any language. Johnson said a care companion typically reaches a family within 15 minutes and will check back after an initial appointment to re‑match if needed.
Board members asked cost and liability questions during the presentation. Johnson said the platform will be offered with family consent, staff will submit referrals only with permission, and the service can be used anonymously via a self‑serve tool. A district administrator noted Care Solace has a provider‑vetting process and that use would be voluntary rather than required, which affects the district’s financial or legal obligations. The district told the board the per‑student cost for Care Solace is $4 and that the expense has been included in the district’s allocated budget.
Separately, the board voted to purchase EduClimber, a data‑integration platform for MTSS, under a motion from Trustee Roney supported by Trustee Cook. The three‑year EduClimber contract totals $132,463 and passed 7–0. Trustees described EduClimber as a central place for educators to view multiple student data points and to run referral and progress‑monitoring workflows rather than pulling screens and reports from several systems.
Johnson said Care Solace and EduClimber are intended to complement existing local partners such as Novi Youth Assistance and Easterseals, and that the district is developing referral pathways this summer to clarify when staff should use each tier‑3 resource.
The board received the presentations and approved the EduClimber purchase; implementation, onboarding and staff training were described as next steps.
