Mental Wellness Services Continue Into Summer At Fairfax County Public Schools

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — The summer may be a break for students from their class workload, but life changes and preparations for the new school year could be some reasons they seek out mental wellness support. At Virginia's largest school district, consultations are being offered for a limited time during the summer break.

Fairfax County Public Schools' Office of Intervention and Prevention Services is offering free mental wellness consultations virtually with a school psychologist or social worker through Aug. 1. The service is available to middle and high school students, as well as any family.

Amber Ong, a school psychologist supervisor at FCPS, told Patch that the free consultation service has been offered for nearly 20 years.

"The purpose of the consultations is to offer just a direct point of contact for any family or student who might be struggling over the summer or just have quick questions related to mental wellness or mental health, and to be able to offer resources, reassurance, suggestions and also a connection to broader community supports if they're needed," said Ong.

Families will request appointments through the FCPS website and will get a virtual appointment between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. The virtual appointments help meet families where they are during their summer plans.

Appointments typically last about 45 minutes. According to Ong, most appointments are a one-time need. Other times, clinicians see the need to connect students or families to other services, such as a mental health provider. Family information is kept confidential, unless the families specifically request it be shared with their schools.

"Sometimes the best thing that comes out of it is really just that understanding that every school during the school year does have staffed clinicians, staffed social workers, psychologists, and so sometimes we can even just connect them back to their own school, so there can be continued follow-up throughout the school year," said Ong.

Any family is eligible for the service, whether they have kids or not. For students, the service is limited to middle school and high school, when Ong says they are "able to advocate for themselves."

"Elementary school students, yes, they definitely need supports, but typically their parents have a better understanding of their needs than the kids themselves," said Ong.

Ong says a majority of appointments are sought to address family changes such as divorce or other changes their children may be experiencing. They could also seek advice on working on study skills, minimizing their children's screen time, or working on their social skills.

Common topics of discussion for the students are issues with friendships or relationships, bullying and other conflicts, improving grades, dealing with pressure about grades from families, and the transition from middle to high school or graduating high school.

According to Ong, each school has a part-time or full-time school psychologist as well as a part-time or full-time school social worker. The school psychologists' work often involves assessing students for special education as well as counseling individually and in small groups, while social workers focus on connecting families to outside resources and ensuring students are attending school. Psychologists also assist the schools with social-emotional learning and creating trauma-informed and supportive environments for students.

"At that broader level, we both work together to connect families and students with outside counseling services if that's needed," said Ong. "Since we don't typically provide therapy within schools, if we do feel like they already have reached that level of mental needs, we will refer families out."

If students do need more mental health support, one option for mental health needs is therapy offered to high school students through a FCPS partnership with Hazel Health since spring 2023. For behavioral health needs, the referral could go to the county's program through the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board.

Ong says FCPS is promoting the consultations as a mental wellness service, meaning students or families don't necessarily need a concern to speak with a psychologist or social worker.

"I encourage anyone who you know is maybe feeling like there are some differences or some mental wellness challenges going on, either in their lives or their children's lives, that they just would love to hear from someone who's an expert in the field," said Ong.

Families may request a consultation online or by calling 703-503-2520. If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, call or text the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988, contact the Fairfax County Community Services Board Emergency/Crisis Services at 703-573-5679###a> or call 911.