Schools receive behavioral health services expansion funding

Three Catholic schools in the Diocese of Sioux City will have increased access to mental and behavioral health care due to a three-year grant from the Wellmark Foundation totaling $232,500.

Patty Lansink, diocesan superintendent of Catholic Schools said the grant funds will benefit students at St. Rose of Lima School in Denison, St. Patrick School in Sheldon and St. Mary School in Storm Lake as they met the eligibility requirements.

The schools currently receiving mental health services through Catholic Charities therapists, but the grant will increase the access to two full days a week for St. Mary and one full day a week at both St. Rose of Lima and St. Patrick.

“We are pleased that the Wellmark Foundation awarded these funds to assist our schools and Catholic Charities to provide additional access to behavioral health services for our students. We thank Wellmark for recognizing the importance of access to mental health care for children with these grants,” the superintendent said.

Nathan Phillips, clinical supervisor of child and school-based services at Catholic Charities, echoed his appreciation to the foundation to assist in increasing access to mental health care in northwest Iowa.

“As we look to expand our services around children’s mental health, we are deeply grateful to Wellmark for their generous support,” he said. “This grant will allow us to expand access to mental health services and provide the tools our children and youth need to build resilience, hope and healing. This grant reflects the spirit of the saying, ‘It takes a village.’”

The Wellmark Foundation pointed out that working families in rural Iowa often face challenges like taking time off work and school and traveling long distances to access mental and behavioral health care. All but four of Iowa’s rural counties are designated as mental health professional shortage areas. The Wellmark Foundation’s three-year School-Centered Behavioral Health Grant helps make these new mental and behavioral health services available.

“Schools play a vital role in our communities and school-centered mental and behavioral health services can be a game changer for youth, families and schools,” said Laura Jackson, executive vice president of health improvement at Wellmark and chair of The Wellmark Foundation. “Iowa youth face significant mental, behavioral and physical health challenges, which can be amplified in rural Iowa towns due to the lack of ready access to quality care. By working together to close these gaps and address behavioral health challenges early, we can help students develop social and emotional skills that are important to living a long, healthy life.”

The Wellmark Foundation’s School-Centered Behavioral Health Grant is available for eligible rural Iowa schools that want to establish lasting mental and behavioral health services for Iowa youth. For more information visit Wellmark.com/SchoolBehavioralHealthGrant.