HCPS AWARDED SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH GRANT TO ASSIST THE NEEDS OF OUR DIVERSE STUDENT POPULATION

Hillsborough County

Public Schools has been awarded a five-year School-based Mental Health (SBMH) grant for approximately $8.5 million. The grant is funded through the United States Department of Education, Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities-National Programs. Federal funds will contribute $8,562,135 (75 percent) towards the School-based Mental Health project and non-federal match funds will contribute $2,140,534 (25 percent). Inkind match funds include the salary of supplemental social workers providing mental health supports in the district.

This School-based Mental Health Service project will implement a comprehensive recruitment and retention plan with the goal of increasing the number of credentialed school-based mental health service providers serving Hillsborough County Public Schools students. The comprehensive strategy outlined in the project includes activities that focus on restructuring compensation, recruiting personnel from diverse backgrounds that reflect the demographic makeup of the district’s students and providing a robust array of professional development opportunities to support new and existing staf members.

The district expects that the project will result in the following outcomes: