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To: Superintendents, Principals, School Counselors, Mental Health Professionals, School Nurses, Education Partner Leaders and Communicators, K-12 Public Information Officers
From: B. Grace Bullock, Ph.D., Senior Mental Health Officer, Oregon Department of Education
Date: June 30, 2022
Re: ODE Launches Oregon Classroom WISE
Dear Partners,
ODE is excited to announce the launch of Oregon Classroom WISE (Oregon CW) – a free, digital learning program, website, video library and resource collection for all Oregonians to increase and strengthen school and community mental health and well-being, and promote care and connection!
Adults play a vital role in promoting youth mental health and well-being, and identifying and responding to their emotional, social and behavioral needs. Many have asked for more education, tools, and/or resources to increase mental health literacy to better support and address the mental health and well-being needs of Oregon’s youth and school staff, and to help foster care and connection.
In response, the Oregon Department of Education has launched Oregon CW as part of a $5.5 million Strengthening Mental Health in Education Initiative, funded by Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds (ESSER III) Set Aside funds.
Oregon CW was developed in collaboration with the Mental Health Technology Transfer Center (MHTTC) Network and the National Center for School Mental Health at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Its resources include evidence-based, field-tested, individually tailored, learning pathways for administrators, school counselors and other mental health professionals, classroom teachers, families, parents, caregivers and students, and school staff and community based organizations.
Each pathway includes self-paced online learning modules, a video library, resource collection, and a website focused on mental health literacy that aligns with ODE’s strengths-based, trauma- and social-emotional learning- informed, equity-centered Integrated Model of Mental Health.
Accessing Oregon CW
To access Oregon CW visit https://healtheknowledge.org/course/view.php?id=743 and follow the steps listed. If you need assistance with registration, navigation, moving through the course, contact the HealtheKnowledge Help Desk for 24/7 email support, as well as weekday chat and phone support: https://hek.zendesk.com/hc/en-us.
The online course begins with a brief, introductory session explaining ODE’s Integrated Model of Mental Health followed by six modules organized into two major sections. The first major section covers Tier I mental health prevention and promotion. The second section provides Tier II/III information and strategies for working with students experiencing adversity or distress. Participants learn about mental health topics through a range of engaging online learning formats including videos, interviews with youth, educators, and school mental health experts, interactive slides, reflection questions, and more. Participants can also receive certificates of completion for each individual module!
We know that training alone is not enough to create healthy schools. Taking the Oregon CW online course and/or reviewing the videos and resources are only the first steps. It’s up to you to decide how best to use and share these materials to enhance your school community’s mental health and identify and respond to students with mental health concerns. We encourage you to develop collaborative communities that use these tools and resources to support the unique mental health needs of your schools and districts.
We will continue to expand this library of resources based on your feedback, so stay tuned as more content is released in the coming months.
For more information regarding ODE’s mental health and well-being initiatives please email Dr. B. Grace Bullock at grace.bullock@ode.oregon.gov or the Mental Health in Education team at ODE.Mentalhealth@ode.oregon.gov.
May you be well, and have a safe and restful summer.
Grace
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