The Behavioral and Mental Health team in the Office of Student and Family Support (SFS) works to help ensure that schools and districts build internal capacity to meet the social emotional and behavioral and mental health needs of their students, families and staff as well as develop their capacity to build partnerships with community-based providers.
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On August 10th, 2022, Governor Baker signed into law Chapter 177 of the Acts of 2022 (An Act Addressing Barriers to Care for Mental Health). This webpage provides a brief overview of the bill's K–12 education-related provisions that the DESE has a role in implementing. Please contact the Office of Student and Family Support with questions via achievement@mass.gov . For additional information, you can also read How the Commonwealth's New Mental Health Act Impacts Schools provided by the Rennie Center (a DESE partner on several related initiatives).
A Comprehensive School Mental Health System (CSMHS) is defined as school-district-community-family partnerships that provide a continuum of evidence-based mental health services to support students, families, and the school community.
A CSMHS:
Last Updated: January 25, 2024
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 135 Santilli Highway, Everett, MA 02149
Voice: (781) 338-3000 TTY: (800) 439-2370
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