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Collaboration between students' families and the school is an essential component to promoting student mental and behavioral health. Many schools structure their mental health services using a Multi-Tiered System of Supports that offers three different tiers of support from universal supports to personalized help for students with serious problems. The authors describe practical ways to involve families in promoting mental health at each tier of support.

February 14 marked the 1-year anniversary of the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and April 20 marks the 20th anniversary of the tragedy at Columbine. Much progress has been made over the last 20 years in the understanding of threat assessment, crisis preparedness, and the importance of increasing access to comprehensive mental and behavioral health supports. At the core of this understanding is the recognition that there are no single or simple solutions to school safety; rather, ensuring safe schools requires a comprehensive, ongoing effort on the part of the entire school community. It is a way of being, a mode of operation, a culture, and a commitment to evidence-based practices. It also requires acknowledging that there is no way to guarantee that nothing bad will ever happen but that we do everything possible both to prevent unsafe behaviors and actions and to mitigate the negative consequences when safety is compromised. As such, it is not surprising that educators, district leaders, families, and policy makers continue to debate the most critical components of school safety. There are differing perspectives on the value and relative importance of increased school security and law enforcement officers in schools, physical hardening of schools, arming teachers and other educators, increasing access to mental and behavioral health services in the school and community, improving threat assessment procedures, improving information sharing with law enforcement, and coordinating emergency response plans with community first responders. Addressing gun violence must include preventing access to firearms by individuals at risk of hurting themselves or others. In order to make true progress, the authors conclude, school psychologists must see themselves as critical players in policy and practice conversations.

Behind every student dealing with a mental health problem is a family trying to grasp what's happening to their child and struggling to do its best. This personal story shares the journey of a family as it confronts a child with Generalized Anxiety and Panic Disorder and describes the many starts and stops and confusion of diagnosing and treating a mental illness.

Students do not leave their mental health at the front door when they come to school. From wellness to serious illness, a student's mental health status is integral to how they think, feel, interact, behave, and learn. Decades of research and experience have laid a solid foundation and framework for effectively providing mental health services in schools that protect student well-being, promote learning, reduce stigma, and improve access. Providing mental health services, ideally in a multitiered system of supports, is good for students, their families, educators, the community, and society at large. Until we take seriously the role of mental health in learning, school reform efforts, largely focused on teacher quality and instruction today, will fall far short of the goal of having all students thrive in school, at home, and in life.

The mental health implications of crisis exposure have emerged as a critical and challenging facet of school safety and crisis response, expanding our focus to encompass both psychological and physical safety, as well as prevention and recovery. Best practice reflects this evolution in our understanding and encompasses the continuum of crisis and emergency management: prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery.

Recently, the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) has developed and approved several documents and resources that support foundational policy and practice areas critical to the future of school psychology: (1) effective education systems; (2) comprehensive school mental and behavioral health services; and (3) the comprehensive role of school psychologists. This article will review critical aspects of these documents and offer several simple and effective strategies to embrace in professional practice and personal advocacy.

Research has shown that students' social, emotional, and behavioral health affects their academic achievement. This has enormous implications for teachers, school mental health providers, and the students themselves. A student who is hungry, disengaged, preoccupied, or behaviorally disruptive simply is not going to respond as well to even the best instruction. The responsibility to manage this crisis may seem daunting, but resources that meet immediate needs and bolster a school community's resilience and effectiveness over time are available. Such resources include action planning and using school-based mental health professionals who can help during these difficult times. This article stresses the role of principals in meeting the social, emotional, and behavioral needs in their schools and in helping struggling students and faculty members during these tough economic times. It outlines strategies that principals may use to advance the agenda of educating the "whole child" in their school.

The economic downturn is hitting schools hard, and in many places, school psychologists are seeing positions cut, services limited, and roles redefined. At the same time, the need for prevention and intervention services is skyrocketing as children, families, and staff suffer the effects of lost incomes, homes, and stability. Forces that may seem less imminent as a threat but very much contribute to the sense of risk include uncertainty as to where school psychological services fit in the list of priorities laid out by the new Administration, persistent confusion about or lack of awareness of school psychologists' role among many stakeholders and the media, and the continued intent of the American Psychological Association (APA) to restrict the use of their title. In this article, the authors aim to convey the very real sense of urgency that the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) sees in the need for school psychologists to address these threats at the local level immediately. The authors share NASP efforts to address these issues and available resources to help school psychologists do the same in their states and local school districts.

The tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown, CT (USA) has brought the conversation about how to reduce violence, make schools safer, improve school climate, and increase access to mental health services to the forefront of the national conversation. Advocating for comprehensive initiatives to address school safety, school climate, and school mental health begins with school psychologists. They are uniquely positioned to advocate for evidence-based initiatives that create safe and supportive learning environments and to ensure that students have access to the supports they need to be successful both inside and outside of the classroom. School psychologists have unique training in collecting and analyzing data to help ensure that school-wide systems are addressing the needs of the school and that the appropriate prevention and intervention services are available for those students who need them. They can: (1) identify key stakeholders; (2) advocate for comprehensive initiatives to address school safety, school climate, and school mental health; (3) advocate for representation on school and district level leadership teams tasked with addressing school climate, safety, and mental health; and (4) develop key messages related to comprehensive school safety and mental health that can be communicated with stakeholders. NASP has posted resources that are available to assist the school psychologist at http://www.nasponline.org/resources/crisis_safety/school-safety-resources.

Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), Maryland, is the 17th largest school district in the country, with more than 146,000 students and 200 schools (34 of which are National Blue Ribbon and 27 of which are Title 1). Wielding a budget of more than $2 billion, MCPS is also one of the top performing school districts in the country, with a 90% graduation rate (the best among the 50 largest school districts) and some of the nation's consistently highest achievement scores. Despite many enviable aspects of MCPS's position, the reality of the economy and direction of school reform is hitting hard here, too, and school psychologists are being affected. "We are certainly better off than some districts, yet many school psychologists feel underutilized," says June Lucas Zillich, copresident with Debra Wotherspoon of the local Montgomery County School Psychology Association (MCSPA). "Many of us feel that decision-makers are not aware of the breadth of our skill set and therefore the value of the investment in school psychologists." The reasons are both immediate-term fiscal issues and more entrenched, systemic disconnects between school psychologists' comprehensive skills and training and the actual provision of services. The local group's advocacy plan aims to address both. The MCPS school psychologists started rethinking their professional advocacy efforts a few years ago with the release of the NASP Practice Model. The Practice Model, as intended by NASP, provided a framework for advocating for the comprehensive role of the school psychologist. Initial advocacy efforts included discussions with district school psychologists and presentations to members of the school board and top district leaders. In the past year, however, escalating budget realities and the transition in system leadership forced MCSPA leaders to rethink efforts as creatively--and broadly--as possible. They determined that they had to move beyond top leadership both in terms of target audiences and in terms of who was doing the advocating. They developed a multipronged plan that involves all of the school psychologists, and targets building leaders and parents as well as district leaders. Key elements of the plan are highlighted.

This year for National School Psychology Awareness Week, November 12-16, 2012, the authors urge their school psychologist colleagues across the country to help their students and the colleagues that they support to discover and celebrate their individual strengths. Whether strengths are academic, athletic, or social, they serve to bolster an individual's resilience in the face of stress. Helping others harness their individual strengths can have unlimited benefits such as boosting stress tolerance, improving academic performance, increasing life satisfaction, and even augmenting self confidence. In addition, this is an opportune time to remind themselves of their own personal and professional strengths to help them become more resilient school psychologists. Helping their students, colleagues, and themselves focus on their strengths is at the heart of the School Psychology Awareness Week theme, "Know Your Own Strengths: Discover Them. Share Them. Celebrate Them." Anchored around the poster theme and images, the strengths program involves a series of resources and activities that school psychologists can use to reach out to school staff, students, and parents to help students achieve their individual goals. The authors also encourage school psychologists to reflect on their own strengths and how they will tap into them throughout the year.

A day in the life of a student at school is filled with potential connections (relationships, linkages in learning, behavioral choices, etc.). Friendships with peers, relationships with teachers, acknowledgements from administrators, encouragement from coaches: These are all interpersonal connections that are essential not only to making school an enjoyable place to be, but also to building a child's resilience and ability to overcome challenges and adversity. Time and again, research points to the central role of meaningful connections in children's adjustment. Having a trustworthy adult in their lives will help children overcome challenges or major life crises. School psychologists are in a unique role that allows them to facilitate students' connections while they are at school through direct work with students and groups of students, consultation and collaboration with colleagues, and development of programming to forge linkages. Helping students and schools focus on strengthening positive relationships and increasing positive connections is at the heart of national School Psychology Awareness Week, November 14-18, 2011. The authors encourage school psychologists to use School Psychology Awareness Week as an opportunity to forge positive relationships among students and staff throughout the broad school community. It is one opportunity to concentrate activities among school psychologists across the country. The authors suggest activities that are worthwhile any time.

April 20, 2009 marks the 10th anniversary of the Columbine High School tragedy that took the lives of 12 students, a teacher, and two teen killers in 1999. This school shooting affected people worldwide who watched on television as police circled the building and terrified students fled the school with hands raised over their heads. The Columbine Memorial, which was completed in 2007, recognizes and honors the innocent victims: the deceased, the injured, the survivors, and the community members of Littleton, Colorado. Today, in addition to remembering the innocent victims, the authors suggest to take the time to remember the important lessons learned as a result of this, and other horrific events of targeted school violence. In this article, the authors discuss how to keep children safe at school and urge educators to be more unified, vocal advocates for policies that support what schools can do effectively.

The PREPaRE Crisis Prevention and Intervention Curriculum is the first comprehensive curriculum developed and offered by NASP. PREPaRE's purpose is to build the capacity of schools at the local level to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from crisis events. Embedded in this primary goal is the ability to foster systems change consistent with and in support of a multitiered service delivery system. Specifically, PREPaRE provides school-based mental health professionals and other educators training on how to best fill the roles and responsibilities generated by their participation on school crisis teams and teaches specific intervention strategies to help in the intervention and recovery process. One of the issues that has arisen in some districts, however, is the challenge involved in proposing a new training like PREPaRE for staff development. Schools are busy with competing priorities and strapped with tightening budgets. A number of school psychologists have found creative ways to overcome these barriers, including securing grant funding, which does exist. The authors discuss how to secure grant funding and gain support for PREPaRE training in one's district.

School psychologists are leaders in the most essential efforts to create a world in which all children and youth thrive in school, at home, and throughout life. Their leadership derives from their commitment to uphold the dignity and rights of all children, to doing so through evidence-based practice, and to recognizing the important role of others in schools (e.g., families, teachers, administrators, and peers). One issue on which school psychologists have been crucial champions has been creating safe and supportive schools for all students, with a particular focus on vulnerable populations like lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ) students and those with special needs. Some people are resistant to acknowledging and addressing the needs of LGBTQ students. Most people, though, simply lack basic knowledge about or are uncomfortable with the topic and would prefer it took care of itself. In this article, the authors offer some simple advocacy tips and resources for building commitment to create safe and supportive schools for LGBTQ students.

May is National Mental Health Awareness Month. This is a great time to highlight the importance of mental wellness and school-based mental health services to children's positive learning and development. There is heightened urgency to the imperative to advance school-based mental health and school psychologists' expertise as essential to the provision of quality, evidence-based services. As a centerpiece for mental health promotion during May, NASP is teaming up with the Child Mind Institute's Speak Up for Kids, a free nationwide public education campaign to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of mental health and learning disorders in children and teens. During National Children's Mental Health Awareness Week (May 6-12, 2012) and throughout the school year, NASP members are encouraged to give talks at their schools or other work locations as part of this national effort to raise awareness about the importance of student mental health. This is an important opportunity for school psychologists to highlight their role and help parents and educators better understand the types of resources or services that they can provide. This article offers some great ideas for making the connection with mental health.

This article talks about the School Psychology Awareness Week, November 14-18, 2011 that involved school psychologists from around the country and in Washington, District of Columbia, helping students, educators, and policy makers make connections that can improve outcomes for students and families. Activities built on the theme, "Every Link Matters. Make the Connection." and also included the Gratitude Works program and the Student POWER Award and Possibilities in Action Partner Award programs. School psychologists gave 241 Student POWER Awards and 430 Possibility in Action Partner Awards. As a centerpiece of School Psychology Awareness Week, NASP hosted a Congressional briefing on November 17th highlighting the key components of safe and supportive conditions for learning.

The role of the school psychologist is strategically placed at the epicenter of a child's life. Not only do school psychologists provide direct services to the students at their schools, but they also work and collaborate with teachers, parents, peers, administrators, and community providers. Consequently, the potential impact that school psychologists can have on their students is boundless. However, when they talk about their impact, they frequently detail specific problems and how they facilitate intervention to reach a goal. They focus on data, numbers, aim lines, and test scores to demonstrate the efficacy of their services. But what about those aspects of their students that are difficult to operationalize? Positive experiences with peers and adults contribute to a child's resilience and ability to withstand personal challenges. Helping students and school focus on strengthening positive relationships and increasing positive experiences is at the heart of national School Psychology Awareness Week, November 8-12, 2010. The theme, "Today is a good day to ... SHINE!" is directed to students more than to other adults in the building. The program involves a series of resources and activities that school psychologists can use to reach out to school staff, students, and parents to help students achieve their individual goals. The authors encourage school psychologists to use School Psychology Awareness Week as an opportunity to increase positive acts among students and staff throughout the broad school community. In this article, the authors suggest activities which are worthwhile any time and also how to use the NASP School Psychology Awareness Week poster.

Effective discipline is essential to creating safe, supportive learning environments for all students, which is critical to academic achievement. Since the passage of zero tolerance policies in the early 1990s, many school districts have relied on punitive discipline focused on harsh strategies such as using suspension and expulsion as primary disciplinary actions for even minor misconduct. Unfortunately, as school psychologists know, purely punitive discipline is ineffective at best and often even counterproductive, denying students vital learning time and undermining the overall school climate. The good news is that policy makers and school districts are beginning to respond to the growing evidence that punitive discipline does not work, and to take a serious look at alternative approaches. School psychologists are in an ideal position to assist schools in creating safe learning environments by working closely with administrators and staff. They have unique training in children's psychological and educational development as well as behavior management to facilitate the implementation of effective school-wide and targeted positive discipline strategies. Helping one's school establish such a policy may seem overwhelming in the face of the immediate needs of disruptive students; however, getting buy-in from key stakeholders and decision makers can start with some simple, basic steps at the start of the school year. The authors discuss these basic steps. (Contains 2 online resources.)

Everything in educational policy reform today in some way connects to student outcomes. In an effort to help school psychologists advocate more effectively for their services, NASP created "School Psychologists: Improving Student and School Outcomes" that links NASP policy, practice, and research with student outcomes. This document is organized around the role of the school psychologist and how his/her work is led by the five guiding principles delineated in NASP's policy document, "Ready to Learn, Empowered to Teach" (2008), and some of priorities for educational reform promoted in the U.S. Department of Education's "A Blueprint for Reform of the Reauthorization of the ESEA." Through the alignment of the Department of Education's priorities and NASP policy documents regarding roles, services, and student outcomes, the authors hope to demonstrate that as a professional association NASP expects school psychologists to perform a broad-based role that is linked to improved student outcomes. Furthermore, they hope to emphasize that when school psychologists' role is reinforced with appropriate resources, supports, and student-to-practitioner ratios, positive student outcomes can be anticipated.

Being the "go-to" person who understands how to deal with problems and help struggling students succeed is truly something to be proud of and promote. School psychologists want administrators, teachers, and parents to view them as an invaluable resource for effective problem solving. Shining a light on the positive aspects of their work and the possibilities in students' lives is the focus of national School Psychology Awareness Week, November 9-13, 2009. The theme, "See the possibilities in you. We do!" is directed to students more so than to other adults in the building. The program involves a series of resources and activities that school psychologists can use to reach out to school staff, students, and parents to help students achieve their individual goals. School Psychology Awareness Week is one opportunity to concentrate activities among school psychologists across the country. In this article, the authors suggest activities that are worthwhile any time.

The National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) is celebrating its 40th anniversary and the 20th anniversary of the Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) credential. NASP was founded on March 15, 1969 during a national planning conference in St. Louis. In this article, the author provides a brief overview of the NASP.