The Mental Health Coach at Effective School Solutions provides comprehensive behavioral health services to K-12 students, including wellness promotion, behavioral health screening, individual and group support, care coordination, and crisis referral. This role focuses on serving vulnerable populations in a school-based setting, employing strategies to recognize and mitigate implicit biases for equitable and inclusive support. It requires understanding and respecting diverse cultural backgrounds, exhibiting professionalism and ethical behavior, and adhering to legal and organizational standards. The ability to operate effectively in diverse environments is essential.
JOB RESPONSIBILITIES
Behavioral Health Support:
- Provide individual and group support for students with behavioral health concerns.
- Facilitate promotion and prevention programming, including health education related to behavioral health.
- Perform regular check-ins and scheduled meetings to offer emotional support and promote wellness using structured curriculum materials.
Administrative Support:
- Document activities related to individual and group behavioral health support.
- Arrange appointments related to behavioral health.
- Utilize comprehensive behavioral health screening tools and oversee the associated database management.
Care Coordination:
- Connect individuals to behavioral health support resources like outpatient therapy, support groups, and social services.
- Coordinate with other behavioral health professionals, specifically for students who have Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).
Wellness Education:
- Deliver wellness education encompassing topics such as fundamental behavioral health symptoms, nutrition, and exercise.
- Support students in setting and planning goals, including areas such as improving physical activity and sleep habits.
- Instruct on essential life skills such as stress management, time management, and problem-solving.
Coping Skills Development:
- Provide guidance on coping skills for youth, including behavior activation, recognizing thinking patterns, using distraction strategies, and regulating emotions.
Group Programming:
- Facilitate small group sessions aimed at improving wellness and life skills, with a focus on social-emotional skills, stress management, time management, organization, and problem-solving.
- Raise awareness of prevalent behavioral health conditions through organized group curricula.
Risk Response:
- Follow established protocols when addressing risk within the school or broader organizational setting.
- Identify potential risks and refer to on-site behavioral health providers, such as PPS professionals.
- Provide emotional support and facilitate warm handoffs to on-site behavioral health providers for students waiting to be seen for crisis services.
- Recognize potential risks and refer individuals to on-site behavioral health providers.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor’s degree in social work, psychology, or sociology required.
- 2+ years of experience working in a school, health, or community settings with children and adolescents ages 5-18 required.
- Experience working with students and families, as well as community health and social services agencies.
- Strong understanding of adolescent development and behavioral health issues.
- Effective problem solving and communication skills.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
- Ability to work collaboratively in a multidisciplinary team environment.
- Strong organizational and time-management skills.
