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Liberty Junior High awarded grant to create Student Mental Health Access Center
Summary
District 111 administrators reported Liberty Junior High received a competitive School-Based Health Services Network grant to establish a Student Mental Health Access Center focused on chronic absenteeism, behavioral challenges and social-emotional supports; hiring will follow grant guidelines and confidentiality protections were discussed.
Liberty Junior High will establish a Student Mental Health Access Center after winning a competitive grant from the School-Based Health Services Network, Assistant Superintendent for Student Services Dr. Sandra Hock told the Board of Education on March 25.
Hock said the grant is intended to target chronic absenteeism, behavioral challenges and increased social-emotional support needs. She said the grant provides candidates for the mental-health specialist position, and that the district will interview from those candidates in accordance with the grant’s hiring guidelines.
When Board President Marissa Swistowicz asked how student confidentiality would be safeguarded while using Magic School AI as part of special-education supports, Hock said there is a SOPPA agreement in place and “specific student will not be used in the database,” describing protections similar to other district vendors. The district also noted the IAASE grant will fund AI-supported lesson design and differentiation for special education staff.
The board discussed whether the mental-health specialist could be hired from within; Hock said she believed the grant requires selection from the candidates provided but said she would double-check the requirement.
The grant-funded Student Mental Health Access Center is scheduled to operate in the upcoming school year; the district will follow grant rules for staffing and report back to the board on implementation details and timelines.
