The report card is in, and the Wellness 4All Mental Health Program is posting impressive results.
The program, which partners with schools to support students and staff, has been implemented at Milford, Centennial and Seward public schools since 2022. It operates in partnership with Educational Service Unit 5 in Beatrice and Memorial Health Care Systems, which funds a portion of the initiative.
Wellness 4All began serving ESU 5 school districts in 2017. Since then, it has expanded to nine districts, including those in Seward County.
Before the program began, suicidal ideation and suicide attempts were double the state average and higher than the national averages. Reducing those numbers has been a key focus.
Since 2017, the program has seen a 202% increase in student population served alongside an 84% decrease in suicidal ideation. Data from evidence-based assessments also shows increases in self-esteem, optimism, attendance and engagement in school activities, along with a decrease in anxiety.
Participating students have a 100% graduation rate, and pre- and post-program assessments indicate that all participating students report having wellness strategies to cope with difficult days.
“There is never a day in which I wake up and do not want to go to work, because I know there is always a student, staff or administrator who is excited that the team will be there,” said Jen McNally, director of mental health and wellness for ESU 5.
At the core of Wellness 4All are Licensed Independent Mental Health Practitioners who are present in each school two to three days out of the week and offer a consistent and approachable presence for students. In times of crisis, such as the death of a student or staff member, the team increases its presence in the affected district.
Jen McNally serves Milford, Cole Stark works with Centennial and Jamie Mapp is based at Seward.
“The most effective way to reach a lot of these kids and these students is at school,” said Sean Roberts, a mental health clinician on the Wellness 4All team. “There’s a lot of barriers to getting people in for treatment, and telehealth has been a nice benefit, but there’s a component of being able to do that in person. School is such a great place to be able to access kids and have them access us in that way.”
McNally said healthy kids create healthy learners and healthy citizens. The program works with families and does not diagnose kids, create treatment plans or bill insurance.
“Most of the time, kids just randomly come into our spaces and say, ‘hi,’ and want to hang out,” McNally said. “We really love that, because they really see it as a normal thing, and we want that to be normal.”
Wellness 4All focuses on building coping skills rather than repeatedly revisiting problems, and it helps students understand why they feel the way they feel. This includes combating the anxiety and depression often caused by social media, McNally said.
“It's really cool when kids have those light bulb moments where they have that noise of the world, like we all do as humans, like, ‘Maybe I can't do that; maybe I shouldn't try,’ and then that empowering of ‘No, you can. You can try it,’” she said. “‘What's the worst that can happen? You fail? No big deal. We'll try it again.’ And, it’s being a partner with them in that journey.”
The ESU 5 team also provides trainings and interactive assemblies focused on student wellbeing, educator wellbeing, professional development and climate and culture. This includes mental health and suicide awareness for both staff and students. Staff are also trained in trauma-informed care and strategies to reduce burnout.
Each district has an annual Wellness Week where students participate in activities aimed at reducing stigma, and they all display posters with encouraging messages. Wellness 4All distributes seasonal newsletters featuring wellness check-ins, reminders and positive affirmations, and, to expand its reach, it shares quotes, “Wellness Wednesday” videos and other positive content on Facebook.
Seward Public Schools Superintendent Josh Fields said the program is a valuable resource. Students are comfortable seeking support from LMHPs and value having a trusted adult to talk to.
“Students are willing to talk about things before it gets out of control in their lives and they feel like they don’t have a way out,” Fields said. “There’s just lots of pieces that they’re able to do and detect, and to have those connections with kids is very, very important for all three districts.”
McNally emphasized that the program is designed to support, not replace, traditional education.
“We truly, fundamentally believe that schools are not treatment facilities; we are educational facilities,” she said. “So, we’re going to support kids, but we’re not going to take kids from class an hour plus at a time, unless it’s a crisis. And, we’re going to partner with families.”
Fields said the initiative has helped change how students view mental health.
“We talk a lot about, if somebody has a broken leg or experienced an injury on the court or on the field, it’s the same thing,” he said. “It’s something that has helped destigmatize the thoughts around mental health, but also prepares kids to be able to deal with conflict and being able to communicate.”
The program continues to evolve based on feedback from parents, students and community members, and community support has played a role in its growth. The JJ Foundation, established by a York couple after the loss of their son to suicide, donated $25,000 to support Wellness 4 All at York Public Schools.
The program has also raised thousands of dollars through the sale of branded sweatshirts and T-shirts.
At its core, the program aims to help students better understand themselves and build the tools they need for the future.
“Every single human has good days and bad days, and some people just need to know ‘That’s normal, and you’ve got it,’” McNally said. “That feeling of empowerment, like, ‘I see you, and you can do hard things.’”
