District outlines expansion of telehealth and behavioral supports as student mental‑health referrals rise

Canyons School District officials told the Board of Education Thursday that student mental‑health and behavioral referrals have risen across grade levels and that the district is expanding telehealth and other human‑centered supports to respond.

Brian McGill, director of student services, said the district’s telehealth pilot with Intermountain Health — launched this school year in 17 schools — has reduced missed instructional time and will expand next year to all schools and staff. “This was the first year that we launched our telehealth pilot, which has been a great program,” McGill said.

McGill also described ThriveTime, a multi‑tiered social‑emotional learning curriculum that will move to “version 2” in fall 2025, and said district teams are refining behavioral support continua so coaches and administrators can rapidly match instructional and wellness interventions to classroom needs. He reported rising District Case Management Team (DCMT) referrals and youth academy enrollments: “We have 241 DCMT cases and 80 of those will be summer reviews where we’re looking at fall placement,” McGill said.

The presentation included data the district characterized as a shift of problems down the grade ladder: many behavior problems historically seen in high school now are appearing in middle and elementary grades. McGill and other staff described the District Support Team process for reviewing level‑2 and level‑3 infractions and the DCMT for level‑4 and level‑5 cases, and said the district is drafting clearer reintegration plans required by statute when students have been arrested, charged or adjudicated; those plans generally include behavioral interventions, short‑term mental‑health supports, academic interventions and notification protocols to relevant parties.

Board members asked how the district will triage emergency situations and how elementary teachers will get more immediate behavioral support. McGill said the district is building a behavioral continuum that clarifies roles and responsibilities — from classroom teachers and instructional coaches up to wellness and IEP teams — and will roll out coaching and administrative training over the summer.

McGill also highlighted the youth academy program, which serves students referred from day‑treatment and residential placements as well as students with unsafe‑school violation histories. He shared parent testimonials describing “life changing” improvements for students who completed the on‑site programs.

Staff noted employee wellness actions as well: an RFI for an employee wellness clinic and an RFP for an employee assistance program are underway, and childcare and planning‑time expansions were listed as retention strategies.

Board members urged continued legislative advocacy for state funding that supports school‑based mental health and wraparound services, and McGill said he will work with the district’s legislative contacts and national associations to advance those priorities.

Staff asked the board for further direction on reintegration protocols and said they will return with a playbook-style description of district supports and outcomes in the next reporting cycle.