Project WISE - Wellness Initiative for Safe Education

Norman Public Schools (NPS), in collaboration with Battelle for Kid, the Cook Center for Human Connection and Bridges Behavioral Health, is seeking a STOP grant for the Wellness Initiative for Safe Education project (Project WISE). The program will enhance mental health support and safety for students and staff through comprehensive programming. The project focuses on providing parent mental health training and coaching, staff mental health training, conscious discipline programming, and Tier 3 intervention services such as partial hospitalization and day treatment for students in need. Project WISE represents a comprehensive effort to address the mental health and safety needs of NPS, promoting equity and access to essential services for all students. NPS serves 15,450 students, with 8,107 in Title 1 schools. District needs include mental health student concerns with 59.6% of students experiencing moderate to severe psychological distress, and 73.8% reporting depressive symptoms. Furthermore, substance abuse and high rates of suicidal ideation are pressing issues, compounded by a lack of sufficient mental health professionals and school counselors, leading to a student-to-counselor ratio of 343:1, far above the recommended 250:1. Services to students, families, parents, and teachers will include professional development, Tier 3 student support, student alternatives to discipline programming, and parent/family mental health training and parent/family coaching.