student wellness – An LAUSD board proposal would coordinate mental health support through integrated wellness teams and a trauma-focused index.
A new Los Angeles Unified School District proposal is aiming to fix a problem families often feel but can’t always name: when student mental health support is scattered across the system.
Board member Karla Griego says her resolution. framed around “Wellness without Silos. ” is designed to coordinate who responds to students’ wellbeing needs and how.. The approach. she argues. would help replace crisis-by-crisis efforts with a more reliable network of trusted adults. common planning. and follow-through at each school.
The resolution centers on creating Integrated School Culture and Wellness Teams.. Griego describes these teams as bringing together the people already working with students. such as mental health personnel where available. aides. counselors tied to academic and student support programs. and other staff.. The goal is for schools to meet together. consult on patterns they are seeing. and build day-to-day plans that help students before issues escalate.
In this context, the bigger shift is less about adding brand-new services and more about making existing support work as a system.
Griego also highlights a proposed “trauma assessment system” or student trauma index.. Misryoum reports that the district already uses an equity needs index to look at indicators such as community risk factors. but Griego’s plan would add school-centered measures intended to reflect stress. school climate. and mental health needs.. She says that index would then guide which kinds of staff or resources a school would receive.
The resolution is positioned as an operational change rather than a direct new hiring commitment.. Griego said it would repurpose staff to strengthen coordination, alongside professional development for educators and classified staff.. In her view. targeted learning topics could help staff respond more effectively to students’ mental health and wellness needs. including areas like social-emotional learning and anti-bias.
Griego’s push comes as schools confront multiple pressures. including heightened concerns around student mental health and the strain on district capacity after the pandemic period.. Misryoum also notes that the proposal is motivated by the impacts students and families have faced in the district. where wellbeing needs can intensify when safety and stability are disrupted.
If the board votes in favor later this month. Misryoum says the next step would be moving the plan from concept into accountable implementation.. For families. that matters because coordinated support can influence whether students get help early. and whether schools feel like places where students know who to turn to.
Griego said the resolution is supported by other board members and is expected to come to a vote later this month.. She framed the measure as a way to strengthen school climate by ensuring students have consistent access to the adults and interventions that can help them feel they belong and are understood.