Darien Board Of Education Considers Adding Director Of Mental Health

DARIEN, CT — Following the unexpected deaths of three Darien students within the last year — two due to suicide — Darien Public Schools has worked this summer to come up with solutions to address mental health and support students in town.

On Tuesday during the Darien Board of Education's regularly scheduled meeting, Superintendent of DPS Dr. Alan Addley recommended that the school district hire a director of mental health.

According to a summary of the job, the director of mental health will:

"Identify critical mental health issues for students, families and staff and provide oversight and implementation of clinically sound behavioral health and community support services while ensuring the application and growth of evidenced based practices in the area of behavioral health in schools.

"The director of mental health will also serve as the instructional leader in the areas of social emotional learning and will serve as the district's Safe School Climate Coordinator and Family Care Coordinator. The director of mental health will also support the statutorily-required mental health plan for student athletes (required as of July 1, 2023)."

The role would help with requirements outlined in a mental health bill that was passed last spring.

Addley said the position would also liaison with outside agencies, and will be essential in "designing and forming any programs around mental health, and would touch on what the psychologists and social workers are doing."

Several board members had questions and concerns about Addley's recommendation.

"I'm not ready to really get behind this yet until we look at what the students need. I think we're putting in more administration when we need possibly an outside source where students feel comfortable to talk to someone," said board member Tara Wurm.

"This is a difficult position, by any stretch of the imagination, not just because of what happened recently, but I think it really requires an administrative perspective to be brought to it," Addley later said, "to proactively and effectively oversee the program and to advocate accordingly."

Board member Tara Ochman said the position isn't the answer to the crisis the school district went through last spring.

"This is an answer to the requirements we have by law now," she said.

Addley said if there was someone in the district actively and proactively working on the latest and best practices related to suicide prevention, then that person would bring those solutions to the table for the district to implement, as opposed to responding to a crisis.

Shirley Klein, assistant superintendent of special education and student services in Darien, said the position would bring a "continuous spiral" throughout the district which can coordinate efforts related to addressing mental health.

"There's a spiral going through all the schools and the community and the town, and bringing all of our mental health supporters together," she said. "Those would be counselors, social workers, psychologists, agencies, families and the community. I think that's the design of [the role]."

Christopher Tranberg, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction, said the director of mental health would provide a beneficial curriculum to students on mental health and wellness, and also provide professional development.

Board member Dennis Maroney said the job description was "very vague and bland."

Board Chair David Dineen said it could be changed with the help of Klein's description of how the positon would function.

The board did not vote on the matter, but Addley said the district is looking to hire for the position beginning in September.

Funds for the role would have to either be transferred in the budget, or the board could approve a special appropriation. According to meeting materials, the salary and benefits of the director of mental health could project to be $175,000.

Watch Tuesday's board of education meeting here. The discussion on the director of mental health begins at the 18:30 mark.