Tips, Tools and Toolkits

School bus drivers play an instrumental role in both promoting student mental health and reducing violence and bullying among students. To support bus drivers in these roles, leaders from Middletown, Connecticut instituted two programs: The Peaceful School Bus program aimed to decrease disruptive behavior and bullying on school buses, and Kognito aimed to help bus drivers identify and refer students experiencing mental health challenges.

The Boys Town Specialized Classroom model was implemented to reduce disruptive behaviors, discipline referrals, and absenteeism among students with emotional and behavioral problems in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The model is implemented by classroom teachers and has strong evidence of reducing office referrals and disruptive behaviors, and increasing academic engagement, instruction time, and on-task behaviors among students.

To increase the number of students receiving mental health services, Connecticut schools have engaged community mental health providers in delivering school-based care. The engagement and support of community mental health providers has led to an increase in students receiving school-based mental health services in all three participating SS/HS districts and in the state.

To reduce the incidence of suspensions and expulsions, particularly for male students of color who are disproportionately impacted, Connecticut employed a Restorative Practices approach across its SS/HS districts. Baseline data indicated that statewide, male students were twice as likely to be suspended as female students, which was true for all racial and ethnic groups. Further, Black and Hispanic boys were 2-3 times as likely to be suspended or expelled as White boys, and Black and Hispanic girls were 4-6 times more likely to get such a sanction as their White counterparts.

National data suggests that LGBTQ youth are at greater risk than their peers for mental health challenges, including depression and suicide. To better understand and support the mental health of LGBTQ students in Bridgeport, Connecticut, school and community leaders collected quantitative data on the health risks for these students, conducted focus groups, shared findings with stakeholders, and conducted two regional conferences.

“The Collaboratory” integrates various state grants and initiatives to ensure a climate of collaboration. State leaders worked together to develop a State Integration Team to include many state initiatives in order to align the work across the state. The initiatives include: Project AWARE, School Climate Transformation, Pre-K Development, Systems of Care, Office for a Safe and Respectful Learning Environment, OJJDP Comprehensive School Safety Initiative, and State Youth Treatment Planning for Substance Abuse.