NCSMH Friends & Colleagues,

The National Center for School Mental Health (NCSMH) at the University of Maryland School of Medicine was recently awarded the National Initiative to Advance Health Equity in K-12 Education by Preventing Chronic Disease and Promoting Healthy Behaviors: Priority 2-Emotional Well-Being. This Cooperative Agreement is funded by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention Healthy Schools Division. The NCSMH will work with states and school districts across the U.S. to advance healthy equity in K-12 schools, with a focus on mental health and emotional well-being.

As a part of this cooperative agreement, the NCSMH, in partnership the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL) will launch the CDC Healthy Schools Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child Emotional Well-Being Learning Community (WSCC Emotional Well-Being LC). This learning collaborative will run from September 2022 to June 2023. The learning collaborative will provide comprehensive training, technical assistance and coaching from national experts at NCSMH and CASEL on topics such as culturally responsive and equitable practices, trauma-informed and healing-centered school mental health, evidence- and equity- based social emotional learning, universal mental health screening, staff well-being, and many more.