Vancouver Public Schools Earn Grant Funding for School Behavioral Services

Monday, September 29, 2014

Kirsten Nicolaisen, GoLocalPDX Digital Producer

Photo Credit: iStock

On Monday, the U.S. Department of Education awarded Vancouver Public Schools a $3 million grant to help students with mental health issues.

The School Climate Transformation Grant is awarded to programs that promote positive student behavior, mental health, and classroom environment. The grant will make it possible for the district to offer social-emotional learning services for students with mental health problems as an alternative to suspension and expulsion.

Vancouver Schools was the only district in the Pacific Northwest to recieve the award.

"This grant aligns perfectly with our strategic plan to develop research-based systems of support for creating a culture of respect and equity at every one of our 35 schools," said Sally Charuhas, executive director Vancouver Schools Special Services. "With this funding we now have a five-year plan to scale our efforts to secondary schools."

Six years ago Vancouver Schools implemented a plan to focus efforst on learning environments for kids with mental health problems. The district has also made a concentrated effort to train district employees on how to better work with students with mental health issues.