School Mental Health: Treating Students K- 12
- Continuing Education
Tackle the youth mental health crisis head-on with this dynamic, multi-day course that equips professionals with the latest clinical insights, real-world strategies, and collaborative tools to support school-aged children through inclusive, evidence-based, and culturally responsive care.
- In Person
This course requires in person attendance.
Fairmont Copley Plaza, Boston, MA
$605
This is the standard price, for a full list of profession pricing see below.
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Early Registration Deadline:
Continuing Education Credits
Earn up to:
14.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s) ™
14.00 Social Work hours
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Overview
Mental health issues among school-aged children and adolescents have continued to overwhelm students, schools and communities. The impacts are far reaching—from academic performance and financial challenges to long-term public health outcomes and societal well-being. With schools being a primary access point for mental health screening and services for many children, the school setting can offer prime opportunities for early identification, treatment, and coordination of care.
Mental health professionals in and out of educational systems can play a key role in addressing the mental health crisis. Still, too many of us struggle to stay up to date on changing diagnosis, treatment, and best practice guidelines in school settings. To promote the best outcomes, providers need guidance on screening and treatment tools, care coordination, referral pathways, and larger systemic strategies.
Our popular course is designed to offer participants the latest clinical information and practical strategies that address current topics in school mental health through a mix of lectures, case studies, lived experience, interactive panels and Q&A. Faculty this year will discuss working with families, supporting high-achieving students, poverty's impact on developing brains, autism, play therapy, boys' crisis of connection, effective CBT techniques, the experience of being black in school, measurement-based care strategies, culturally responsive care for immigrant students, pornography, gaming, and more!
Each year we strive to create a warm, energizing and fun learning experience to enhance connection and networking among attendees. We welcome all mental health and health clinicians, educators, school administrators, researchers, and others interested in the development and treatment of school-aged children and adolescents to join us in 2026!
Learning Objectives
- Discuss how an environment of persistent poverty in childhood impedes developmental milestones, and which strategies may counteract the negative effects.
- List several common challenges of executive function that manifest in individuals with autism.
- Integrate effective techniques for promoting and preserving the mental health of high-achieving students.
- Describe elements of play therapy and how it can be introduced in the school setting for positive outcomes.
- Utilize data available to school-based clinicians to select and monitor specific measures of student mental health
- Review examples of lived experience mental health issues from students in their own words.
- Articulate several reasons for the increasing rates of loneliness, depression, anxiety, suicide, hate crimes, and mass violence in boys.
- Explain how exposure to pornography and gaming fit into a wider pattern of problematic internet use in youth.
- Implement school-based practices that foster inclusion, safety, and belonging for immigrant students.
- Devise strategies to effectively communicate with families about the diagnosis and management of child mental health issues.
- Describe how a persistently biased environment in schools leads to the miseducation of students of color.
- Apply tailored activities of cognitive behavioral therapy in select school scenarios.
Developed and Offered By:
Continuing Education courses are developed by faculty from Harvard Medical School's teaching hospitals and accredited by Harvard Medical School. This course is offered by Cambridge Health Alliance.
Participant Types
Specialty Physicians, Primary Care Physicians, Social workers, Counselors, Family Therapists, Psychologists, Nurses, and Others.
Schedule
All agenda sessions are in Eastern Time.
Friday, February 6, 2026
Welcome & Introduction
Nancy Rappaport; Christopher Willard
8:05-8:15 am
The Impact of Poverty on the Brain
Horacio Sanchez
8:15-9:30 am
Autism and Executive Function
Scott Yapo
9:30-10:30 am
Break
10:30-10:45 am
Supporting High-Achieving Students
Vanessa Prosper
10:45-11:45 am
DBT Strategies for Emotional Regulation (TBD)
11:45 am-12:45 pm
Lunch (on own)
12:45-1:45 pm
Play Therapy for Mental Health
Christopher Willard
1:45-2:45 pm
Break
2:45-3:00 pm
Measurement-Based Care Practices for School Mental Health Staff
John Crocker
3:00-4:00 pm
Lived Experience Panel
4:00-5:00 pm
Close Day 1
5:00-5:05 pm
Saturday, February 7, 2026
Welcome Day 2
Christopher Willard; Nancy Rappaport
8:10-8:15 am
The Crisis of Connection in Boys
Niobe Way
8:15-9:30 am
Problematic Online Use: Porn and Gaming
Paul Weigle
9:30-10:30 am
Break
10:30-10:45 am
Culturally Responsive Mental Health for Immigrant Students at Schools
Huan-Tang Lu
10:45-11:45 am
Working with Families to Navigate a Child's Mental Health Needs
Christine Crawford
11:45 am-12:45 pm
Lunch (on own)
12:45-1:45 pm
Being Black in America's Schools
Brian Rashad Fuller
1:45-3:00 pm
Break
3:00-3:15 pm
10 Concrete CBT Activities That You Can Use with Students on MONDAY and Beyond!
Alex Hirshberg
3:15-4:15 pm
Wrap-Up Discussion
Nancy Rappaport; Christopher Willard
4:15-4:30 pm
Close Program
4:30-4:35 pm
Faculty
Harvard Medical School Continuing Education attracts the best and brightest faculty from all around the world. As a student in this course, you’ll have access to outstanding course directors and faculty.
Karen Kuc, MPH
Course Director
- Director, Continuing Education in Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance
- Associate in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Christopher Willard, PsyD
Course Director
- Psychologist and Educational Consultant
- Teaching Associate in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Nancy Rappaport, MD
Course Director
- Consultant, School-Based Programs, Cambridge Health Alliance
- Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Part-Time, Harvard Medical School
Christine Crawford, MD, MPH
Associate Medical Director, Office of Programs and Services, National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)
Vice Chair of Education, Director of Medical Student Education, and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine.
John Crocker, MEd
Administrator, Methuen Public Schools Counseling Department
Founder, Massachusetts School Mental Health Consortium
Brian Rashad Fuller, MEd
Associate Provost for Strategy, Operations & Partnerships, The New School (NYC)
Alex Hirshberg, PsyD
Clinical Psychologist and Founder, Hirshberg Behavioral Health Services
Huan-Tang Lu, PhD
Lecturer in Human Development and Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education
Vanessa Prosper, PhD
Associate Professor of the Practice, Counseling Psychology Department, Boston College
Horacio Sanchez
President and CEO, Resiliency Inc.
Niobe Way, PhD
Professor of Developmental Psychology and Director, Science of Human Connection Lab, NYU.
Paul Weigle, MD
Associate Medical Director for Ambulatory Services, Natchaug Hospital, Hartford CT
Scott Yapo, MD
Associate Training Director, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship; Psychiatrist, Neurodevelopmental Clinic, Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance; Instructor, Harvard Medical School
Location Information
Venue
Fairmont Copley Plaza
138 St. James Avenue
Boston, MA 02116
Hotel Reservations
A block of rooms for the nights of February 5th, 6th, and 7th 2026 has been reserved at the hotel for this event, under the group name Cambridge Health Alliance.
All reservations must be made, modified, or canceled individually through the hotel’s Reservation Department via this link (https://book.passkey.com/go/SchoolMentalHealth2026) or by calling 1-800-441-1414 and referring to Group Name. Reservations for rooms accessible to guests with disabilities may be made in the same manner. Reservations must be made on or before January 12, 2026 to guarantee the CHA group rate.
Hotel confirms the following guest room rates per night:
$199 Moderate Room
$210 Fairmont Room (Single or double-bedded)
$250 Deluxe Room
Guest room rates are exclusive of applicable taxes and service fees.
Request Information
Interested in learning more about this program? Sign up for details.
Course Fees
Fee Disclaimer
You may register through our secure online environment and will receive an email confirmation upon receipt of your payment. Prices include CME credit, electronic syllabus, refreshments, continental breakfast. At the end of the registration process, a $10 non-refundable processing fee will be added to your registration.
Early Registration Deadline:
| Role | Standard Price | Early Registration Price |
|---|---|---|
| Physician (MD/DO) | $605.00 | $565.00 |
| Nurse (RN/APRN) | $475.00 | $435.00 |
| PA | $475.00 | $435.00 |
| Psychologist | $475.00 | $435.00 |
| Resident/Fellow | $475.00 | $435.00 |
| Social Worker | $475.00 | $435.00 |
| Allied Health Professional / Other | $475.00 | $435.00 |
Accreditation
The Harvard Medical School designates this live activity for a maximum of 14.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry maintains responsibility for this program and its content. This course offers 14.00 continuing education credits.
Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 5444. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry is solely responsible for all aspects of the program. This course meets the requirements for 14.00 continuing education hours, and is also applicable for Commonwealth of Massachusetts Counseling/Allied Mental Health accreditation for 14.00 credits.
This activity has been certified by NEAFAST on behalf of the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Allied Mental Health & Human Services Professions for LMFT Professional Continuing Education. Certification #213102848, for 14.0 contact hours. The States of CT and RI accept NBCC and NASW approval for marriage and family therapy.
For the purpose of recertification, the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board and American Nurses Credentialing Center accept AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ issued by organizations accredited by the ACCME (Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education). We would also suggest that learners check with their state licensing board to ensure they accept reciprocity with AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for re-licensure.
The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) states that AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ are acceptable for continuing medical education requirements for recertification. We would also suggest that learners check with their state licensing board to ensure they accept reciprocity with AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for re-licensure.
The American Medical Association (AMA) has an agreement of mutual recognition of continuing medical education (CME) credit with the European Union of Medical Specialties (UEMS). Additional information regarding this agreement may be found on the European Union of Medical Specialties website.
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada recognizes conferences and workshops held outside of Canada that are developed by a university, academy, hospital, specialty society or college as accredited group learning activities.
Application for social work continuing education credits has been submitted to NASW-MA. Please contact us at cme@challiance.org for the status of social work CE accreditation. NY Social Workers: Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an Approved Provider #0038 of continuing education for licensed social workers. This course offers 14.00 contact hours.