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General and Specific Competencies for School Mental Health in Rural Settings

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Handbook of Rural School Mental Health

Abstract

Many youth entering the education system lack the social and behavioral skills necessary for academic achievement. This is an alarming trend considering that youth spend a substantial amount of their time in school and that social and emotional growth is closely linked with academic success. With 21% of children in the United States living in rural areas it is important to have mental health services available in rural schools. The quality and value of school mental health (SMH) approaches depend on service delivery by well-trained and prepared SMH professionals working within the system. This chapter details the general and specific competencies needed for rural SMH professionals. Additionally, findings from a large rural SMH needs assessment are provided for specific examples of areas of need in rural schools. The chapter concludes with suggestions for supporting SMH in rural schools.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Social Work, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

    Dawn Anderson-Butcher, Jill Hoffman & David M. Rochman

  2. School of Social Work, Portland State University, Portland, OR, USA

    Jill Hoffman

  3. Muskingum Valley Educational Services Center, Center for Innovation and Data Services, Zanesville, OH, USA

    Michael Fuller

Authors
  1. Dawn Anderson-Butcher
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  2. Jill Hoffman
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  3. David M. Rochman
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  4. Michael Fuller
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jill Hoffman .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, USA

    Kurt D. Michael

  2. Department of Psychology, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, USA

    John Paul Jameson

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Anderson-Butcher, D., Hoffman, J., Rochman, D.M., Fuller, M. (2017). General and Specific Competencies for School Mental Health in Rural Settings. In: Michael, K., Jameson, J. (eds) Handbook of Rural School Mental Health. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-64735-7_4

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