Sumter school district outlines plan to expand school-based mental health services after student losses

Sumter School District officials detailed the district’s behavioral and mental health services during the May 19 board meeting, describing current community partnerships, five new programs launched since 2024 and goals to add school-based therapists and a clinical day program.

The update came from Nikisha Keith, coordinator of behavioral health services, and Veron Davis, executive director of student support services, who briefed the Sumter School District Board of Trustees on service levels, program pilots and next steps. “Mental health continues to affect academic performance, attendance, and behaviors across our district,” Keith said.

Keith said the district currently partners with nine outside agencies that provide individual and group therapy, crisis intervention, behavioral intervention and psychiatric services. The district also employs three Title I social workers and three contract social workers who provide assessments, family engagement and home visits. Keith told trustees the district tragically lost nearly 15 students this school year to suicide, homicide or other causes and argued that “mental health must be met with the same urgency” as other student supports.

Since 2024, Keith said the district added five programs: the FLEX prevention and intervention program (including vaping and substance-abuse work), a Strengthening Families pilot, trauma-informed interventions for students and staff, a proposed Resilient Parent Network (pending approval), and a classroom-management/de-escalation program for teachers. She provided referral counts for the year including 374 referrals from community partners and about 225 to the FLEX program; some pilot programs had low take-up this year but are planned for expansion.

Keith requested that the district consider hiring school-based therapists directly so counselors would have on-site clinical support rather than relying solely on community partners who are sometimes offsite. She said the district’s goal is “at least one school-based therapist in each elementary and middle school and at least two in our high schools,” plus a clinical day program to serve students on homebound instruction for mental-health reasons. She identified operational needs for those programs: budget, competitive salaries and benefits, office space, and training, and said Medicaid reimbursement mechanisms and clinical supervision are in place.

Board members pressed for specifics. A trustee who asked to remain closely involved told staff she would request updates every two weeks and asked for a proposal showing fiscal impact and operational details. Superintendent William Wright and staff agreed to deliver a written proposal about the clinical day program and a staffing/fiscal plan for school-based therapists to the board and to share it with the board’s liaison (Miss Scott) for distribution.

Board discussion also addressed program use and referrals. Keith said referrals typically come from building administrators, school counselors and social workers and asked administration to add parent-facing access on the district website so families can find services more easily. She said the district provides crisis-management kits and a district crisis team that partners with schools after a loss; she also cited a formal agreement with the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services signed in July 2022 to support rehabilitative behavioral health services.

The board did not take a formal vote on hiring school-based therapists at the May 19 meeting. Members did direct staff to produce the written proposal with fiscal detail and to provide frequent progress updates so the board can monitor implementation.

Board member comments ranged from urgency — “we need to move ASAP on this” — to questions about program evaluation and how schools are being encouraged to make proactive referrals. Keith said she meets monthly with key team members and that engagement increased after the first year of meetings; she also reported some pushback from a small number of schools but said most have welcomed the supports.

The district will return to the board with a written proposal and fiscal estimates and will share implementation timelines for school-based therapists and the clinical day program.