For Immediate Release
October 15, 2019
Contact: Lydia Martin
Lydia.Martin@stlucieschools.org
Phone: 772-429-5532
St. Lucie Public Schools Awarded Mental Health Service Providers Demonstration Grant of $1.6 Million
ST. LUCIE COUNTY, FL – St. Lucie Public Schools (SLPS) was just awarded the Mental Health Service Providers Demonstration Grant in the full amount requested, $1,627,635. This coveted Grant Award follows other recently obtained, large federal grants. This time, the grant award will fund a project designed to help confront the shortage of Mental Health Professionals by creating a pipeline of exceptionally trained School Counselors. SLPS partnered with Florida Atlantic University (FAU) to develop a new program dubbed the Social, Wellness, and Emotional Learning Leaders (S.W.E.L.L.) program. It is designed to increase the number of school counselors in the district’s high need schools.
The program will be 100% funded through this grant from the U.S. Department of Education in the amount of 1.6 million over a five-year period. S.W.E.L.L. is an accelerated 60-credit graduate degree pathway designed to train and place an additional 75 high-quality school counselors over the next five years to better support all students.
The development of this program emerged from a gap between the district’s average ratio of 500 students to 1 counselor and the recommended ratio of 250 to 1, as suggested by the American School Counselor Association (2018). The S.W.E.L.L. program will equip participants with the skills, knowledge, and credentials necessary to address the mental health and wellness of students in Pre-K through Grade 12. The accelerated degree pathway will include fast-track, online, and hybrid coursework in conjunction with 750 hours of field experience so participants are well-trained and ready to successfully serve students from their first day on the job.
Chief Academic Officer, Helen Wild, stated, “The shortage of fully credentialed School Counselors has increased in recent years. FAU has a long history of developing highly skilled mental health professionals. We are thrilled to work with Dr. Elizabeth Villares, Professor of School Counseling in the Department of Counselor Education, on this program. This grant will allow us to offset tuition expenses, leaving candidates to pay only 1/3 of the total tuition, while customizing the program to meet the needs of our students.”
The U.S. Department of Education announced that 27 awards totaling 11 million dollars were awarded nationally, with an average award of $400,000. SLPS is proud to have far exceeded that average on behalf of our teachers and students. SLPS will be releasing information to teachers on the specifics of the application process.
About St. Lucie Public Schools
St. Lucie Public Schools (SLPS) proudly serves students with a graduation rate of 91.8 percent. As a high-ranking B-rated District, there are no failing schools, and SLPS ranks among the top one-third of Florida’s districts for student achievement. The District also has the distinction of being recognized as one of St. Lucie County’s Best Places to Work. The mission of SLPS is to ensure all students graduate from safe and caring schools equipped with the knowledge, skills, and desire to succeed. Connect with us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, or visit http://www.stlucieschools.org.
