Schools offer an advantageous setting for the prevention, early identification, and treatment of mental health problems for youth. However, school mental health (SMH) services are typically not based on evidence for effectiveness, nor are they efficiently delivered, with SMH practitioners (SMHPs) able to only treat a small number of students in…

Schools offer an advantageous setting for prevention, early identification, and treatment of mental health problems for youth. However, school mental health (SMH) services are typically not based on evidence for effectiveness, nor are they efficiently delivered, with SMH practitioners (SMHPs) able to only treat a small number of students in need.…

We explored the relationship between the fulfillment of students' psychological needs of competence, autonomy, and relatedness; student engagement; and student outcomes related to environmental literacy at a residential environmental education (EE) center. We surveyed diverse groups of middle school students (N = 1,278) following the completion of…

Background: In rural communities, understanding and improving school climate may benefit youth facing unique contextual challenges to well-being. As education research rarely focuses on rural schools, we aimed to examine school climate and student well-being with a particular focus on rural schools, compared to suburban schools. Methods:…

Background: In rural communities, understanding and improving school climate may benefit youth facing unique contextual challenges to well-being. As education research rarely focuses on rural schools, we aimed to examine school climate and student well-being with a particular focus on rural schools, compared to suburban schools. Methods:…

Student engagement is a multidimensional construct influenced by complex student, classroom, and school factors. Although prior research has examined various dimensions of student engagement, few studies have adopted a multilevel approach to simultaneously incorporate observational measures of classroom practices with student and school factors.…

The purpose of this study was to establish construct validity of a college and career readiness measure using a sample of youth with (n = 356) and without (n = 1,599) disabilities from five high schools across three U.S. states. We established content validity through expert item review, structural validity through initial field-testing, and…

For the last several decades, researchers and theorists have attempted to understand and predict college student retention. The importance of retaining college students cannot be understated. The impacts of dropout for individuals, colleges, and states can be costly. Prominent theories and research literature point to the complexity of this issue.…

Student engagement is a multidimensional construct influenced by complex student, classroom, and school factors. Although prior research has examined various dimensions of student engagement, few studies have adopted a multilevel approach to simultaneously incorporate observational measures of classroom practices with student and school factors.…

Excessive use of exclusionary school discipline with Black students is a persistent, systemic problem in U.S. schools with potential to affect students' perceptions of their school. For example, students may notice racial differences in out-of-school suspensions, which may relate to how academically engaged they feel and the extent to which they…

Background: Although school climate is linked with youth educational, socioemotional, behavioral, and health outcomes, there has been limited research on the association between school climate and mental health education efforts. This study explored whether school climate was associated with students' depression literacy and mental health stigma…

There is a growing body of research that suggests the first year of high school is a critical transition point for students. It also finds course-taking and successful completion of those courses in 9th grade to be valuable predictors of students' success in high school. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) provides states an opportunity to…

The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the ongoing implementation and outcomes of the Students and Teachers Accessing Tomorrow (S.T.A.T.) initiative in Baltimore County Public Schools (BCPS) that began in the 2014-15 school year. Key components of S.T.A.T., as reflected in the evaluation model (see Figure 1 presented in the main report),…

This brief examines absences in September and students' attendance over the rest of the year. Attendance should be addressed before it becomes problematic. Chronic absenteeism, missing more than 20 days of a school year, is an early indicator of disengagement. High absence rates have negative consequences not only for individual students, but also…

Background: School climate has been linked to multiple student behavioral, academic, health, and social-emotional outcomes. The US Department of Education (USDOE) developed a 3-factor model of school climate comprised of safety, engagement, and environment. This article examines the factor structure and measurement invariance of the USDOE model.…