District mental‑health staff told the board they have expanded school‑based services through local community partners, increased screening and launched a teletherapy option backed by new grant funding.

Sherry Ann Taylor, presenting for the district’s mental‑health team, said the district’s SPARK school‑based model has grown to 22 local partnerships and the district has provided 3,900 hours of school‑based interventions to date. She reported 547 referrals to date for community‑based or school‑based services and said last school year there were 1,088 community‑based referrals served at no cost to families.

Taylor said a three‑year grant from the Jesse Parker Foundation will provide $25,000 annually and will enable teletherapy through Daybreak Therapy for alternative schools, StillWell Elite and students receiving hospital‑homebound instruction. She said Kennesaw State and Georgia State interns have supported services; one grant‑funded intern program ends in December but the interns plan to volunteer through May to complete programming.

Taylor described the department’s crisis and monitoring work: 1,681 safety and threat assessments last school year and 230 safety assessments this school year, mostly involving self‑harm concerns. She said the district uses Gaggle to monitor student digital activity and last year received more than 900 Gaggle reports that included violence, inappropriate content, drugs and self‑harm indicators. The district coordinates after‑hours responses involving counselors, social workers, behavior specialists and school psychologists.

Taylor also described wellness rooms for staff (24 completed) and plans for four more; the district raised $3,000 from a 5K walk to support teacher wellness rooms. She reported more than 3,000 contacts with school psychologists and more than 1,000 contacts with student behavioral health specialists so far this year.

Board members pressed on staffing: Taylor said the district currently has 15 school psychologists on staff but a vacancy of 13 positions. She said the district recruits through Georgia State and Capella University partnerships, attends national conferences and seeks grant funding and incentives to improve competitiveness.

No board action was taken. Members asked staff to return with details on intern transitions, teletherapy rollout, and plans to fill psychologist vacancies.