May is Mental Health Awareness Month
EVERFI is offering teachers these FREE bite-sized lessons focused solely on mental health, wellbeing, and social-emotional learning.
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The Compassion Project (Grades 2-5). Focused on developing compassion and empathy in children.
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Character Playbook (Grades 7-9). Educates students about cultivating and maintaining healthy relationships.
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Mental Wellness Basics (Grades 8-10). Introduces middle and high school students to mental health education.
Tobacco Use Prevention Grant for Schools
The Montana Tobacco Use Prevention Program has once again dedicated $40,000 to the OPI to provide Montana schools with funding specifically intended to reduce youth tobacco use. Grants up to $10,000 per school or $20,000 per school district will be awarded to successful applicants to support student tobacco use prevention during the 2022-23 school year.
The application period for this grant opens on May 9, 2022, and will close on Friday, June 10, 2022. For more information click here.
For inquiries about the application process contact Kris Minard at kminard@mt.gov or 406.444.0785.
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Grant funding will soon be available to schools interested in implementing adolescent health curriculums focused on increasing student physical health and life skill development. The Department of Public Health and Human Services will be offering grants between $500 and $10,000 to support schools in purchasing and implementing the Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) or the Sexual Risk Avoidance Education Program (SRAE). These programs provide valuable information and training to students and can help to meet Montana K-12 Health Enhancement Standards, including:
- Comprehend concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention to enhance personal health (1.1, 1.2),
- Analyze the influence of family, peers, culture, media, technology, and other factors on health behaviors (2.1, 2.2),
- Demonstrate the ability to access valid information, products, and services to enhance health (3.1, 3.2),
- Demonstrate the ability to use interpersonal communication skills to enhance health and avoid or reduce health risks (4.1, 4.2),
- Demonstrate the ability to use decision-making skills to enhance health and safety (5.1, 5.3, 5.4),
- Demonstrate the ability to use goal-setting skills to enhance health (6.1a, 6.2a),
- Demonstrate the ability to practice health-enhancing behaviors and avoid or reduce health risks (7.1, 7.3).
For more information, please review this informational flyer and contact Jonelle LaPiere at the Department of Public Health and Human Services (406-444-1881 or jlapiere@mt.gov).
The U.S. Department of Education defines school climate as the extent to which a school community creates and maintains (1) a safe school campus, (2) a supportive academic, disciplinary, and physical environment, (3) and respectful, trusting, and caring relationships throughout the school community. A positive school climate, where students feel safe and connected to school and cared for by school staff, is critically important to student academic success as well as emotional wellness. Increases in student attendance, academic achievement, and graduation rates have all been linked to a positive school climate (National Center on Safe and Supportive Learning Environments). Likewise, findings from the issue brief Teacher Stress and Health report that educators who feel supported and have positive relationships with their peers report higher feelings of teaching efficacy and emotional wellness.
To learn more about creating a positive school climate, visit the OPI’s School Violence Prevention website and view our positive school climate informational flyer. We also invite you to take a look at this guidance document, Creating a Safe and Connected School Climate for American Indian Students, which was co-developed with Montana students.
For more information, please contact Michele Henson, School Safety Program Manager (406-595-1058 or michele.henson@mt.gov)
The OPI is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, require an alternate format, or have questions concerning accessibility, contact the OPI ADA Coordinator, 406-444-3161, opiada@mt.gov, Relay Service: 711.
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