UW psychology team reviews school-based mental‑health and mentoring programs piloted in ACSD #1

University of Wyoming psychology faculty and trainees briefed the Albany County School District #1 board at its May work session on programs they ran this school year in district schools, including a licensed Campus Connections therapeutic‑mentoring pilot, an outpatient graduate assistantship, an Outride “Riding for Focus” mountain‑biking curriculum, developmental screenings for incoming kindergartners, and ongoing research into exercise and ADHD.

At the meeting a UW psychology presenter described Campus Connections as a program that “pairs at‑risk youth with undergraduate students in one‑on‑one mentoring relationships” and said the program also provided integrated clinical services through graduate clinicians. District staff and UW presenters said the program received 31 referrals this year, ran a 12‑week session in fall and another in spring, and enrolled 12 unique youth across both semesters (9 in fall, 8 in spring, with some overlap). Presenters said about 100% of youth in the program accessed weekly 30–40 minute evidence‑based therapy sessions while enrolled, and that district staff, Department of Family Services (DFS) and juvenile‑justice referrals were among the primary referral sources.

UW presenters said the district funded a 20‑hour‑per‑week graduate assistantship this year, allowing two graduate students to provide clinical services under UW supervision; the presenters said the district will fund two full academic‑year placements next year (one at the middle school and one at the high school), rather than splitting a single line across semesters.

The UW team also described Outride Foundation work at Laramie Middle School. Presenters said an initial grant supplied 26 mountain bikes and instructor training; subsequent grant and research funding replaced the fleet with 36 new bikes. The after‑school mountain‑biking club reported 39 students who participated at least once this past fall; presenters said about 75% of those participants were boys and 25% girls, and that 38% of participants had an IEP or 504 plan compared with about 18% schoolwide.

Presenters described a summer LAADS screening project that provided developmental screenings during Extended School Year (ESY) for incoming kindergarten students, reporting 20 screening reports and three comprehensive autism evaluations that were passed to school psychologists for follow‑up. Faculty said they created clinician handouts intended to make school‑based autism feedback less deficit‑focused.

Researchers on the UW team described an ongoing study on high‑intensity interval training (HIIT) and ADHD among middle and high school students; presenters said they are recruiting a target of 68 participants and described pilot results from a college sample showing improved executive‑function scores after 16 minutes of HIIT. Presenters said the middle/high school trial is not complete.

Presenters emphasized partnership and logistics: district transportation and school staff coordination were credited with enabling students to come to campus, participate in mentoring sessions, and access therapy. The UW team asked the board and district staff for continued operational and referral support as they plan to expand some programs next year.

No formal board actions were taken on the programs during the work session; presenters provided program data and asked the board to continue collaborating with UW on school‑based mental‑health and youth engagement services.