Promoting Student Mental Health: Classroom WISE for Educators

About the Session: Educators and school staff play a vital role in promoting mental health and well-being and identifying and responding to emerging mental concerns in children and adolescents. However, they often have not received the education, training, and/or ongoing support needed to respond with support in the classroom and to make referrals. Classroom WISE (Well-Being Information and Strategies for Educators) offers a free, self-guided online course that was informed by and co-developed with educators, students, and school mental health professionals across the United States. This session will highlight why mental health literacy is needed, describe the development of Classroom WISE, and will review best practices, tools, and strategies for effectively integrating the training into schools and districts.

About the Speaker: Nancy Lever, Ph.D. is an Associate Profession in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and a faculty member at the National Center for School Mental Health. She was one of the developers of Classroom WISE and has worked at local, state, and national levels to improve the quality of and access to school mental health services, supports, and training. She has led or co-led numerous training initiatives across education, mental health, and health systems in close collaboration with youth and families.