The purpose of this quantitative study was to compare mental health and stress in K-5 teachers at a Southeast Texas elementary school based on gender, years of experience, and race. It was guided by the following research questions: How does the relationship between gender among male and female elementary teachers relate to stress assessment…

Coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting global health crisis, George Floyd's murder was broadcast on social media and popular news (The Marshall Project, 2021). While COVID-19 reports demonstrated the ways Communities of Color and rural communities were disproportionately disadvantaged in the U.S. healthcare system (Artiga et al.,…

Background: Addressing school violence is an important public health goal. To assess the role of school mental health curricula in violence prevention, we evaluated effects of an anti-stigma curriculum on violence victimization/perpetration. Methods: An ethnically/socioeconomically diverse sample of 751 sixth-graders (mean age 11.5 years) across…

Introduction: Schools play an important role in promoting physical activity for youth. However, school-based physical activity opportunities often compete with other academic priorities, limiting their implementation. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively explore elementary school teacher and staff perspectives on providing physical…

The debate about mental illness and the importance of good mental health especially in the classroom has surged. Promoting child mental health is a global priority, and educators have an important role to play in mitigating this public health crisis. Early identification, accurate diagnosis, and effective treatment of mental health disorders can…

Therapy dogs positively impact students mental and emotional well-being, which can improve the student's academic performance. Therapy dogs can reduce stress and anxiety levels, which leads to better concentration and improved learning outcomes. Canines can also help improve social skills and behavior, which fosters a more productive classroom…

Using a quasi-experimental design with no control groups, this pilot study aimed to test the effectiveness of a universal mental health promotion program for elementary school students in an underserved United States-Mexico border community. A total of eighty-five fifth and sixth grade students participated in this program and completed the…

Researchers have reported that preservice teachers are unprepared for teaching in inclusive classrooms (Gilmour & Wehby, 2020; Swindlehurst et al., 2019; Texas Education Agency, 2019). The purpose of this qualitative study was to analyze novice elementary educators' perceptions on their preparedness to teach inclusive classrooms. For this…

The purpose of this collective case study was to examine elementary music teachers' mental health and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research questions were: 1) What factors influenced music teachers' mental health and well-being during COVID-19; 2) How did music teachers support their own mental health and well-being during…

Region 14 Comprehensive Center and the Texas Education Agency (TEA) are collaboratively implementing projects to address high leverage problems such as instructional leadership professional development, school-based mental health supports, and evidence-based reading instruction. This profile provides a summary of these selected projects and an…

The incorporation of social and emotional learning (SEL) in schools has been shown to improve academic and psychological health of students. Research has been limited regarding implementation of SEL programs in rural communities, where student needs are heightened. The current study examined factors that could impact teachers' intentions to be…

This paper draws from data from a year long study looking at teachers' perceptions of border violence in tandem with my autoethnographic exploration of the lived experience of border violence as a teacher, mother and as a daughter still grieving for her murdered father. The first steps in starting my research critically exploring educator…

Research among adults has demonstrated concurrent and prospective negative associations between TV viewing and mental health, yet little research has examined these associations among African American and Latino youth or examined the role of children's involvement with TV and parental mediation of TV viewing via coviewing. The purpose of the…

This full report provides an analysis of 2017-2018 AISD student data, showing significant gaps in school perceptions and experiences of transgender and gender-nonconforming students relative to their peers, illustrating the need for additional policies and procedures to support AISD transgender and gender-nonconforming students. A separate…

Texas continues to fall short of the necessary mental health resources for those communities and populations in rural counties. The purpose of this article was to review the mental health resource needs of rural schools in South Texas. The study focused primarily on the perspectives of the school counselors in the identified districts. Funded by a…