District outlines employee-wellness plan emphasizing mental-health training and FMLA outreach

Doctor Melissa Ellis Sandoval, the district leader presenting the administrative report on employee wellness, asked the board April 8 to consider more system-level supports for staff wellbeing, saying “wellness is not a 1 size fits all approach.”

Sandoval framed employee wellbeing as multidimensional — covering physical, financial, emotional, relational, occupational, spiritual and mental health — and argued the district’s approach should balance individual supports with organizational and relational systems. She said mental wellness is foundational and tied wellness strategies to staff retention and instructional quality.

Key elements presented - Trainings: The district has launched in-house Mental Health First Aid and ASSIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training). Sandoval said the district trained its mental-health team and has expanded internal trainer capacity to reach more staff; she noted two trainers speak Spanish so the district can broaden access. - FMLA outreach and 1-on-1 support: Sandoval said the district offered optional one-on-one follow-up to employees after leave. She reported 62 leaves of absence this year and that about 60% of those employees engaged in the optional one-on-one meetings. - Benefits and counseling: Sandoval described the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) — available to employees for six free therapy sessions regardless of benefits enrollment — and noted a Kaiser-linked therapist-matching service called SonderMind to help staff find ongoing care. - Onboarding feedback and warm handoffs: The district has added a survey for new hires to assess onboarding experience and is working to create warm handoffs (continuous transitions) between HR and hiring managers and between clinical supports to limit gaps in care.

Sandoval linked wellness to long-term financial outcomes for employees; she told the board the average age of paraeducator retirees is 59 and presented illustrations of retirement-account accumulation to stress the retention value of benefits and stability.

Board reaction and next steps Board members thanked Sandoval for the work and asked for highlights from a handout; Sandoval pointed to the cost savings of in-house trainings (certifying trainers to reduce per-course fees) and to the district’s goal of increasing employee awareness and utilization of benefits. She said the wellness committee has expanded representation to include custodial and finance staff.

Sandoval closed by offering to answer questions and by noting the district will continue to offer trainings and communications to increase utilization of supports.

Ending The wellness presentation concluded without formal board action; Sandoval said staff will continue training rollouts, broaden communications and monitor uptake of services.