Webster County teacher wins $4,000 grant to expand student mental-health program and dual-credit offerings

Beth Roberts, Highlander health science instructor at Webster County High School, told the Webster County Board of Education on Sept. 22 that her classroom program was awarded a $4,000 West Virginia Public Education Collaborative Grant funded by the Benedum Foundation to launch a peer-led mental-health and suicide-prevention project.

Roberts said the competitive grant "will allow me to launch a new student centered project this year that is both timely and meaningful focusing on student mental health and wellness, including suicide prevention." She told the board the initiative will include peer-led workshops on depression, anxiety, crisis response, coping strategies, QR-enabled access to crisis resources, a mental-health resource toolkit, and digital PSAs targeted to students and families.

Roberts also reported growth in her program's dual-credit offerings. Since returning in 2022 she said dual-credit courses have grown from one to five in-person courses through Glenville. She told the board she would take 13 seniors to begin clinical orientation — "a 225% increase," she said — and that her cumulative grants, donations and in-kind support since 2022 total about $94,000. She added that the program's results will be published in a statewide report and showcased at a statewide event when complete.

Board members responded with praise and offered assistance if the new grant did not cover all planned costs. The board did not take further action at the meeting; Roberts said she would share details of how the grant funds will be spent.

The board packet lists the grant source and the teacher said the project will be shared statewide upon completion; the district will review any follow-up reporting requirements when the program's results are available.