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2024 Bold Steps for Children Award: Celebrating School Wellness Centers

It takes a village to raise a child. This adage is very true here in Santa Clara County where the County Office of Education (SCCOE) has leveraged resources to fund School Wellness Centers in 13 districts throughout the County. Districts throughout the County have invested in supporting youth mental health and either participated in the SCCOE School Wellness Center Consortium or developed School Wellness Centers on their own. Community-based organizations are providing services in the School Wellness Centers and in the coming year the County of Santa Clara will be investing over $12 million dollars to establish 28 new middle or high school wellness centers and provide upgrades to 12 existing centers. These centers will serve thousands of students and are a game-changing strategy to support our children’s and youth’s social-emotional wellbeing.


The youth mental health crisis manifests every day in schools, contributing to higher drop-out rates, student disengagement, chronic absenteeism, and increased disciplinary actions. Teachers, school administrators, and staff are acutely aware that students’ ability to engage in learning is directly related to whether their behavioral health and social-emotional needs are being met.


Integrating social-emotional learning (SEL) and behavioral health into the curriculum and school culture significantly reduces the stigma associated with seeking mental health treatment. When SEL is incorporated into instruction and school culture as well as offering mental health services to students, schools see improved academic performance and attendance. They also see reduced school disciplinary action, referrals into the justice system, and drop-out rates. Students are more likely to receive behavioral health services when they are provided on a school campus.


School Wellness Centers provide safe and supportive environments on school campuses where students can visit to de-stress. They provide holistic support addressing physical, mental, emotional, and social support, family support services, and support to school staff.


To continue to grow and build sustainability of this important wellness strategy, SCCOE is expanding its wellness programs by offering training and technical assistance to districts. This also includes technical assistance for school behavioral health billing and community schools. These supports will directly contribute to the long-term financial stability of these programs in their schools.

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