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Board approves $6.1M contract to expand Kingsview school mental‑health services to K–12
Summary
The board approved a contract with Kingsview to expand prevention and early‑intervention services from grades 7–12 to kindergarten through 12th grade across more school sites, increasing annualized spending and intending to use some unspent prior‑year funds and billing mechanisms for future sustainability.
The Madera County Board of Supervisors approved a contract with Kingsview (KingsView) to expand school‑based prevention and early‑intervention mental health services in county schools.
Christine (Christy) Doss, director of Behavioral Health Services, said Kingsview has been a county partner for about a decade and the proposed agreement increases service coverage from seventh–twelfth grade to kindergarten–twelfth grade and expands sites from 16 to all 58 school sites in the county. Doss said some of the contract increase uses unspent funds from a 2021 Prevention and Early Intervention budget line and that the department expects available funds to cover the program for three years; longer‑term sustainability may rely on billing under CalAIM and Medi‑Cal mechanisms.
"This expansion will incorporate comprehensive services aimed at integrating cultural and age appropriate mental health and suicide prevention education across kindergarten to twelfth grade," Kingsview program manager Sylvia Romero told the board, summarizing prevention, stigma‑reduction, training for school staff and referral pathways.
Supervisors asked about referrals and connections to law enforcement and after‑school providers. Staff said they will develop streamlined referral processes and noted Behavioral Health plans to add school safety resource deputies in three districts to improve field‑to‑school coordination. The contract was presented with a three‑year term (FY 2025–28) and a not‑to‑exceed amount of $6,100,615; the board approved the agreement by roll call vote 5–0.
Doss and Kingsview staff said the expansion is intended to increase universal prevention programming in schools and create clearer referral routes to services for students, educators and parents.
