Contract Canceled

Evaluation of Grant Programs to Increase School-Based Mental Health Services

NCEE Evaluation Division K-12 Studies

Program: Elementary and Secondary Education Act

Evaluation topic(s): Behavior and Attendance , School Improvement

Award amount: $1,380,829

Awardee:

American Institutes for Research (AIR)

Year: 2024

Duration: 1 year (02/15/2024 - 02/10/2025)

Project type:

Implementation Study

Contract number: 91990024D0007/91990024F0006

Background

A series of school shootings and post-pandemic concerns about student emotional and psychological wellbeing prompted renewed federal interest in school-based mental health services. Congress responded with the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022 (BSCA) to support a variety of violence reduction strategies, including a significant boost in funding for two U.S. Department of Education programs that seek to increase the number of school-based mental health service providers in high-need districts. These programs, the School-Based Mental Health (SBMH) Services program and the Mental Health Service Professional (MHSP) Demonstration program, each address a different aspect of the mental health service provider shortage and pipeline. SBMH awards grants to state and local education agencies to increase provider recruitment and retention. MHSP awards grants to partnerships between local education agencies, institutions of higher education, and other organizations to use innovative approaches to train and place more school social workers, counselors, and psychologists. This evaluation would have examined the extent to which the programs' implementation and outcomes were consistent with the key policy goal of expanding the supply of providers in high-need contexts.

Project Activities

Research question

To what extent were grantee strategies/models designed and implemented in ways consistent with program objectives?
To what extent were grantee communities experiencing the programs' shared goal to increase the number of school-based mental health professionals in the field? Did progress appear related to grantee characteristics or the key strategies they used?
To what extent were these programs reaching or covering communities in need?
What key barriers interfered with program success?

Structured Abstract

Design

This study was descriptive. Initial data collection was based on an analysis of data extracted from policy documents, such as grantee application materials. Surveys of grantees were planned for 2025 and 2028 but not completed.