Pupil health: health and mental health services: School Health Demonstration Project.

Existing law requires a school of a school district or county office of education and a charter school to notify pupils and parents or guardians of pupils no less than twice during the school year on how to initiate access to available pupil mental health services on campus or in the community, as provided. Existing law authorizes a county to use funds from the Mental Health Services Act, enacted by the voters at the November 2, 2004, statewide general election as Proposition 63, to provide a grant to a school district or county office of education, or to a charter school, within the county, for purposes of funding specified activities relating to pupil mental health. This bill would establish, within the State Department of Education, the School Health Demonstration Project, a pilot project, to be administered by the department, in consultation with the State Department of Health Care Services, to expand comprehensive health and mental health services to public school pupils by providing training and support services to selected local educational agencies to secure ongoing Medi-Cal funding for those health and mental health services, as provided. The bill would, subject to an appropriation, require a local educational agency selected to serve as a pilot project participant to receive $500,000 each year of the 2-year pilot project, to be used for contracting with one of 3 technical assistance teams selected by the Superintendent of Public Instruction. The bill would authorize the funds to also be used by the local educational agency for staffing, professional development, outreach, and data analysis and reporting, related to the project. The bill would require the State Department of Education, in consultation with the State Department of Health Care Services, participating local educational agencies, and the technical assistance teams, to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature that includes specified information related to the results of the pilot project.