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Madison schools get $1.56 million grant for mental health training, intervention teams

Wisconsin State Journal - 10/18/2018

Oct. 17--The Madison Metropolitan School District is getting more than $1.5 million from the state's school safety fund, the money earmarked to train staff in student mental health issues and for setting up intervention teams.

The grant is in the last round of funding from the $100 million school safety grant program set up in March to make schools more secure and to train staff, after the deadly mass shooting in a Florida school in February.

In June, the Madison district got almost $1 million to beef up security at schools, mostly for classroom and exterior doors, window-hardening film on front entries to schools and more surveillance cameras on school campuses.

The latest grant is among 167 grants to school districts and individual schools totaling almost $12 million. The grants were announced Tuesday by Attorney General Brad Schimel.

In south-central and southwest Wisconsin, 32 school districts and individual schools received over $3.3 million in grants.

The funding in round two requires 10 percent of all school staff must get training in advanced adolescent mental health, and intervention teams must be created.

The teams, known as School Safety Intervention Teams (SSIT), will include one member who has completed the 12-hour adolescent mental health training, one member who has completed threat assessment team training and one member of a local law enforcement agency.

"The Department of Justice is working fast to get local law enforcement, teachers and counselors trained to work together on these teams," Schimel said in a news release.

"Before the end of 2018, we hope to have more than 2,000 people trained in adolescent mental health and threat assessment training," he said.

The Department of Justice said SSIT will typically be in every high school and middle school in a school district, with multiple elementary schools perhaps sharing a team.

"However, due to unique school differences, SSITs may be a multi-school, district-wide or regional team, with case-by-case approval from the Office of School Safety," DOJ said.

Out of 595 schools and districts that received round two funding, 549 grants already have been awarded, with the rest to be awarded soon.

In the first round of funding, 723 districts and schools received school safety grants, including 97 percent of all public schools and about 40 percent of private schools in Wisconsin.

The 32 districts and schools in south-central and southwest Wisconsin getting funding include:

--Adams-Friendship Area School District, $71,850.

--Beloit School District, $145,562.

--Beloit Turner School District, $83,954.

--Cambria-Friesland School District, $21,129.

--Dodgeville School District, $79,178.

--High Point Christian School in Madison, $11,040.

--Holy Rosary Grade School in Darlington, $8,000.

--Iowa-Grant School District, $41,187.

--Jefferson School District, $106,666.

--Johnson Creek School District, $34,838.

--Madison Community Montessori School in Middleton, $11,097.

--Madison Metropolitan School District, $1,558,903.

--Markesan School District, $43,174.

--Mayville School District, $61,008.

--Monroe School District, $129,204.

--Necedah Area School District, $38,860.

--Pardeeville Area School District, $43,240.

--Randall J1 School District in Burlington, $38,261.

--Sacred Hearts Grade School in Sun Prairie, $20,464.

--St. Henry Grade School in Watertown, $10,987.

--St. John the Baptist Catholic School in Jefferson, $10,000.

--St. Peter Catholic School in Middleton, $10,000.

--St. Stephens Lutheran School in Beaver Dam, $10,000.

--Sauk Prairie School District, $155,140.

--Southwestern Wisconsin School District in Hazel Green, $28,004.

--St. John's Lutheran School in Pardeeville, $9,997.

--Verona Area School District, $306,029.

--Westside Christian School in Middleton, $9,896.

--Whitewater Unified School District, $106,387.

--Wisconsin Academy in Columbus, $9,446.

--Wisconsin Dells School District, $94,399.

--Wisconsin Heights School District in Mazomanie, $42,953.

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