Cincinnati / August 8, 2022
Oyler Resource Coordinator Jami Luggen and Best Point, Oyler’s co-locaed mental health partner, were featured speakers at the MindPeace Summit on August 8, 2022 to share their model for integrated school-based mental health. Teams of therapists and school officials from 194 schools in Greater Cincinnati, all of whom have have mental health partnerships facilitated through the Mindpeace network, were in attendance.
Luggen stressed the importance of the engagement of the whole school community, including staff, families, and students, as the first step in assessing the mental health and wellness needs that the potential partner will be asked to address.
The school community engagement process, a foundational element of the Community Learning Center Institute and MindPeace, continues in the selection of the agency that will be invited to become part of the co-located team of partners at Oyler.
With guidance from MindPeace, the school community team interviews the potential partner mental health agencies as well as the specific personnel who will be part of the Oyler Community Learning Center family. Shared vision and compatibility as well as the track record for consistency, capacity, flexibility, and quality are all factors in the selection process.
The innovative culture and flexibility of BestPoint made them the clear choice for Oyler. In addition to providing therapy for students and their families through regular counseling sessions, Best Point therapists also support students and teachers in the classroom to ensure real-time, hands-on strategies for coping with mental health issues.
Best Point therapists also participate in weekly grade-level meetings with teachers and other partners to ensure collaborative, cross-disciplinary support for each student. Paige Bowlin, the BestPoint Behavior Health Counseling Supervisor at Oyler, was enthusiastic about the opportunity for the therapists to be a part of the Student Success Teams. “Access to the student success data has been huge. All of the data and context for each child is in one place, from academics to partner involvement to family background. You don’t have to go to six different places to try to find out what is going on with each child.”
MindPeace is a nonprofit devoted to creating a seamless system of mental health care for children in Greater Cincinnati, anchored by school-based mental health. MindPeace developed alongside Cincinnati’s community learning centers and created the model that has enabled access and financial sustainability to allow every school in Cincinnati Public Schools to have a site-based community mental health agency partnership.