Board of Education (BOE) members need to step up for our students and their mental health needs. Please help by adding your name to this petition supporting a School-Based Mental/Behavioral Health Center (SBHC) housed within Killingly High School.

Not only will this SBHC help students who reside in Killingly, but it can assist the hundreds of students from surrounding towns who attend KHS. These towns include Brooklyn, Putnam, Plainfield, Pomfret, Sterling, Canterbury, Voluntown, Eastford, Griswold, Thompson, and Woodstock.

COVID has impacted us all, especially our children. Our children are struggling, some in silence and some without access to critical mental health/behavioral services.   

Killingly Public School Administration has partnered with Generations Family Health Center to bring on-site mental/behavioral health services for students at Killingly High at no cost to the family or school district.

At the February 9, 2022, Board of Education (BOE) meeting, this SBHC was on the agenda for discussion and vote. Several BOE members didn't show up for that discussion, and others dismissed the mental health needs of our students by ignoring the factual data presented to them. They tabled the discussion and vote without a future date and it was not on the February 23rd agenda.   One member went on record at the 2/23 BOE meeting already stating he will NOT support the SBHC.

View  February 7, 2022, SBHC Powerpoint Presentation: https://www.killinglyschools.org/community/school-based-health-centers.  
View 2/9/22 BOE SBHC discussion from 1:35 through 2:40 on video: https://www.killinglyschools.org/about-us/board-of-education

SBHCs have been successfully implemented at over 28 schools across CT with tremendous success. Putnam has provided an SBHC for more than nine years. The SBHC located at Killingly High will only be providing mental health/behavioral services.

Benefits of having this SBHC with a licensed therapist located at Killingly High School include:

• Support to families by allowing parents to stay at work while attending to their child's behavioral/mental health needs
• Immediate access to licensed Therapists versus waiting weeks to months to get an appointment outside of school.
• Increased school attendance due to the convenient on-site access to Behavioral Health Care  
• Ability to engage in preventative & early intervention of student concerns
• Reduced stigma as the SBHC is part of the services students can receive in school if they choose to
• Complete assessment of student's mental health needs 
• Evidence-based interventions to treat symptoms and conditions 
• Ongoing/Long term therapy and MUCH more!

From first contact, parental/guardian consent and involvement are initiated and emphasized as crucial to successful treatment. No medications will be given to students without parental consent.  The disinformation found in this survey put forth by Killingly's State Representative Anne Dauphinais is all propaganda: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/w2pssf5

Mental/Behavioral Health needs were high before the pandemic. They have only grown, and Killingly and KHS have the incredible opportunity to offer an SBHC within the high school to offer all our high school children a "fast pass" to early intervention and services.

The KPS motto is "Great Things Happen Here" let this be ONE MORE great thing to happen for Killingly Public Schools!

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