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Building Bridges: The Role of Expanded School Mental Health in Supporting Students with Emotional and Behavioral Difficulties in the Least Restrictive Environment

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Handbook of School Mental Health

Part of the book series: Issues in Clinical Child Psychology ((ICCP))

Abstract

The decision to place students in special education with emotional and behavioral difficulties into a more restrictive setting requires careful consideration, particularly in light of the substantial costs, limited rates of return to less restrictive settings, and the poor outcomes for students in these placements. Expanded school mental health, in coordination with existing school services, provides an opportunity to develop innovative, comprehensive models to meet the needs of these students in the least restrictive environment. Program components associated with effective interventions appear to include: a) effective classroom and school environments, b) teacher preparation and support, c) family engagement and support, d) transition supports, and e) evidence-based mental health services. The chapter concludes by highlighting programs that utilize some combination of these elements and presents a brief review of current issues related to the advancement of comprehensive models to meet the needs of students with emotional and behavioral difficulties.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for School Mental Health, University of Maryland, 737 W. Lombard St., 4th Floor, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA

    Carrie L. Mills Ph.D.

  2. Department of Psychiatry, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Carrie L. Mills Ph.D. & Dana L. Cunningham Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Carrie L. Mills Ph.D.
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  2. Dana L. Cunningham Ph.D.
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Correspondence to Carrie L. Mills Ph.D. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, USA

    Mark D. Weist

  2. Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Nancy A. Lever

  3. Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Catherine P. Bradshaw

  4. Department of Psychology, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, USA

    Julie Sarno Owens

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Mills, C.L., Cunningham, D.L. (2014). Building Bridges: The Role of Expanded School Mental Health in Supporting Students with Emotional and Behavioral Difficulties in the Least Restrictive Environment. In: Weist, M., Lever, N., Bradshaw, C., Owens, J. (eds) Handbook of School Mental Health. Issues in Clinical Child Psychology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7624-5_7

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