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At Howard University Middle School of Mathematics and Science in D.C., every staff member is going to be trained in a new program called “Notice.Talk.Act.”
The training is offered free of charge thanks to a federal grant, and is designed to help school employees — not just teachers — take note of situations where a child might need some help dealing with mental health.
The program is like the old “stop, drop and roll” training on fire safety taught in schools in the past, said Rawle Andrews Jr., executive director of the American Psychiatric Association Foundation.
Andrews said the program is not a diagnostic tool, but provides a first step in addressing issues a child may be having.
“If something is going on that might be a cause for concern, it does put you in a more comfortable situation to have a conversation,” Andrews said.
Then, after some assessment, further action can be taken to link a child and the family with the appropriate resources.
Andrews said while many school systems have professional staff in place to handle student mental health, the APA found a need for a program such as “Notice.Talk.Act.”
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“In March of this year, the Department of Education put out a pulse poll and it found that two-thirds of public schools, for example, have professional development days for teachers, but they don’t always include the entire education academic community.”
Kathryn Procope, executive director at Howard University Middle School, a public charter school, said this will be the first year her staff will undergo the training. She said it’s important to her that everyone, from the cafeteria staff to the facilities staff, have access to the program.
“Because everybody interacts with the young people, and what you see, I might not see.”
She added, “The lady who serves breakfast notices that a student who’s always ravenous every day, one particular day, suddenly isn’t.” Or, she said, “Someone who is part of the facilities staff might go in to clean the bathroom, and there’s someone sitting in the bathroom, crying.”
In those cases, she said, it would be helpful for those staff members to have more guidance and tools to help.
Procope said adults tend to forget how emotionally tumultuous middle and high school can be for kids.
“There are so many changes going on — physically, mentally, emotionally — in young people.”
Andrews said the program is designed to give all school staff the training they need “to give our students every chance they deserve to have a good, wholesome school year and later life.”
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