As superintendent of Hillsboro Public Schools, Jon Dryburgh has the chance to interact with young students on a daily basis.
“I stand out in the hallway in the morning and greet kids, and they have connections,” Dryburgh said.
He is one of many adults, including teachers, that Hillsboro students form bonds with outside of the home. Which is why Dryburgh jumped at the chance to have his staff develop skills for supporting the behavioral health needs of those same students.
“The training that my teachers received helped them as they were thinking about how to ask students questions,” said Dryburgh. “With children that are going through some stressors and some circumstances that a lot of us haven’t been through, how do we help those students find their way?”
BeHEARD for Educators
Hillsboro staff were a part of a new Sanford Health program called BeHEARD for Educators, or Behavioral Health Education, Awareness, and Response Development. It’s a course offered to schools to support basic behavioral health concerns for children ages 10 to 17, made possible thanks in part to a generous donation from First International Bank & Trust.
“My team partnered with Sanford behavioral health experts to develop the curriculum,” said Rich Preussler, the director of learning and development at Sanford Health in Fargo. “It’s designed to help school staff develop the knowledge, skills and confidence in identifying and helping youth who may be struggling with a behavioral health concern.”
The course involves two steps. First, school staff complete self-learning modules. Then they participate in a four-hour live virtual session hosted by Sanford instructors. Topics covered include:
- Depression
- Anxiety and stress
- Grief and loss
- Substance abuse and addiction
- Self-harm and suicide
- Eating disorders and more
“There’s really a need for teachers and other school staff to learn more about what students may be going through,” Preussler said. “Just like any of us, if you don’t know what to say or what to do, then you don’t say anything. That’s why we really practice and role play the skills around connecting with youth. Open-ended questions, being fully present with them, being non-judgmental, helping them understand that we care is really the majority of what we’re doing.”
Plus, Preussler says, by showing empathy and developing their listening skills, educators are teaching their students things they can’t find in a textbook.
“When adults can model skills, that has a powerful impact on youth,” Preussler said. “We’re showing by our actions. We’re showing youth all the time how to stay calm and be supportive of others and follow up and connect.”
The need for rural behavioral health
Jac McTaggart is the CEO of Sanford Hillsboro and Sanford Mayville. He helped pitch the program to the school district, and he says BeHEARD for Educators has been a top priority for him because community health needs assessments consistently show mental health as a big challenge in small towns like Hillsboro.
“I don’t think there’s any difference of behavioral health issues in the rural area as there are in urban areas. I think we experience the same things. I think it’s the access to behavioral health care that may not be as readily available in the rural area,” McTaggart said.
Hillsboro completed their program this January, and superintendent Dryburgh has heard overwhelmingly positive feedback from staff.
“90% said the course made it easier to understand the feelings of youth ages 10 to 17 with behavioral health concerns,” Dryburgh said. “The topics that are covered and discussed, they’re heavy. And they are things that students are dealing with. We as adults struggle to know how to help them. That’s the value of it.”
So far school staff from over 30 schools have completed the BeHEARD for Educators program, many of which are located in rural areas of North Dakota. The hours put into the course count towards teachers’ continuing education as well.
Sanford Health also has its own version of the BeHEARD course for employees and leaders. Sanford’s investment in supporting the behavioral health needs of employees includes the requirement that all members of Sanford leadership take the course as part of their responsibilities.
Learn more
- Teen mental health: Resources for teens and caregivers
- Staff wellness therapist cares for the caregivers
- $1M gift funds behavioral health care at children’s hospital
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Posted In Back to School, Behavioral Health, Children's, Community, Fargo, Rural Health
