The mission of the School Mental Health Collaborative (SMHC) is to facilitate and promote access to high-quality, evidence-based, and culturally responsive school mental health practices. SMHC represents a national, interconnected network of researchers, practitioners, and family and youth advocates. The work of SMHC is grounded in social justice to reduce inequalities and promote equity in school mental health systems and practices. Specific goals of SMHC include the following:
1. Conduct and facilitate high-quality, interdisciplinary research that addresses key SMHC objectives: (a) identify the risk and protective factors for youth, caregiver, and educator mental health; (b) develop and test practices to promote youth, caregiver, and educator well-being and prevent mental health concerns; and (c) design strategies to enhance the adoption and implementation of evidence-based practices.
2. Promote the dissemination of evidence-based practices to key stakeholders to inform school mental health policy and practice.
3. Develop research-practice partnerships between university researchers and state/local education and community agencies. These partnerships foster program evaluation of educational practices, design of new school mental health initiatives, and the formation of mutually beneficial research projects aligned with SMHC research objectives and stakeholder priorities.
4. Provide technical assistance to state and local education agencies, supporting their adoption and implementation of various evidence-based practices.
5. Provide training to the next generation of school mental health researchers and practitioners, such as through rigorous pre-doctoral and post-doctoral training programs.
