Allegheny Valley looks to boost mental health support for students

The Allegheny Valley School District soon will be able to provide behavioral and mental health support to students in a quicker way.

The district is adding a part-time school psychologist and a behavioral specialist to its support team, said Melissa Holler, director of pupil services.

“They would be working together with the entire pupil services department to help us provide more immediate assistance,” Holler said.

The district currently uses contracted employees for those services.

“It would reduce the time between when we need support and when we get support,” she said.

Responsibilities of the part-time psychologist would include assisting school staff with observations, helping with the elementary student assistance program and working closely with parents to best help a child’s behavioral and mental needs, Holler said.

The behavioral specialist would work with the school’s pupil services department to develop behavior support plans.

Both positions are districtwide. They are being paid for by a $110,000 grant the district was awarded from the state’s Commission on Crime and Delinquency.

“These two positions are actually another addition to our team,” said district spokeswoman Jan Zastawniak. “We’ve been building a team for student resources. We have counselors, we have a school nurse, we added a social worker a number of years ago. And with Holler and the (school police officer), it’s a whole group of people who work to support the students and the teachers.

“We’re trying our best to find funding for resources that help our students, so when these opportunities come up, we do as much as possible if staff believes it will help our kids.”

Holler said she hopes two people are hired for the positions at a school board meeting in April. The grant expires at the end of the 2024-25 school year. At that point, the district will look at data from the two positions “and then we can reassess and go from there,” Holler said.

There is a high need for school psychologists in schools, said Sheila Desai, director of educational practice for the National Association of School Psychologists. The organization recommends 500 students to one school psychologist.

School psychologists are qualified to assist school staff with student prevention work, social skills and social, emotional and behavioral intervention, Desai said. There always has been a need for mental and behavioral supports, and that need was heightened by the covid-19 pandemic.

Having psychologists in the school as opposed to a contracted employee can build community engagement, Desai said.

Holler said she is hopeful the additional supports increase school resources and decrease student behavioral issues.

“Ideally, we would like to make sure we address the mental and behavioral needs of the students which, in turn, has a positive impact on students’ academic achievement,” Holler said.