The Syracuse City School District (SCSD) and Upstate Medical University have announced a transformative partnership to address youth mental health needs in the community.

A five-year initiative, funded by a nearly $5.5 million federal grant, will provide school-based mental health services (SBMH) to SCSD students while developing a sustainable pipeline of credentialed mental health clinicians to support the growing demand for services.

The announcement of the partnership and grant was made at a press conference at Grant Middle School. Participating in the announcement were Syracuse School Superintendent Anthony Davis; Deputy Superintendent Pamela Odom, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh, SUNY Chancellor John King, JD, EdD; Upstate President Mantosh Dewan, MD; Sipho Mbque, PhD; Terry Bowers, director of mental health for the Syracuse City School District; Chris Lucas, MD, MPH, Upstate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and director of SUNY Tele-Psychiatry Network.

“This is a life-changing moment for our students,” Odom said. “Through this partnership we will improve student well-being by allowing students access to in-person and telehealth services, leading to better mental health, academic performance, and overall well-being. This initiative is more than a partnership, it’s a promise to our students and community. It’s a commitment to equity, access, and opportunity to ensure every child has the support they need to succeed.”

“Our dream is simple,” Dewan said, speaking with reporters. “Each child, no matter how disadvantaged, must have the same level of care and expertise as any other child, with all the needs and the supports, connections, checks and services.”

Next year the partnership aims to close critical gaps in youth mental healthcare by integrating high-quality services directly into schools and expanding the mental health workforce through clinical training. The program will focus on two primary areas: increasing access to mental health care for SCSD students and creating pathways for diverse, credentialed mental health professionals.

As part of the initiative, two main satellite school-based mental health clinics will be established, with several smaller satellite clinics in targeted school buildings. These clinics will be staffed by licensed Upstate professionals and will offer a wide range of services, including culturally responsive therapeutic care, developmental evaluations, diagnostic testing and medication management. The goal is to ensure that SCSD students have direct access to comprehensive mental health services, both in-person and via telehealth.

Another key aspect of this initiative is to build a diverse, credentialed mental health workforce. Clinical fellows, graduate and post-doctoral students, and SCSD staff will be provided with clinical training opportunities in the SBMH clinics to earn the certifications and credentials required to enter the field. By 2029, the partnership expects to train and license at least five new diverse mental health professionals, who will help address the significant need for African American, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) providers in the local mental health system.

All clinicians deployed by Upstate will receive specialized training in culturally competent care, led by Sipho Mbuqe, PhD, Upstate associate vice president and chief diversity officer, who holds a faculty post in the Upstate Department of Psychiatry.  This will ensure that students from diverse backgrounds receive therapeutic services that are sensitive to their unique needs and experiences.

“Through our partnership, Upstate will offer a clear pathway and opportunities to licensure for aspiring local and regional BIPOC mental health professionals, Mbque said. “This will help reduce or get rid of the barriers that pre-licensure BIPOC mental professional experience.  This is not just a mental health program; it is also a community and economic building program. 

The program will be implemented in phases over five years. The first year aims to implement the first centralized satellite clinic at McCarthy @ Beard School, with up to two additional school-based mental health clinics. Year two expects to see the launch of a second centralized clinic at Grant Middle School, along with up to three more clinics at other identified schools. The remaining years will see an expansion of school-based clinics by four and the further optimization of operations, maintaining all established clinics and ensuring sustainability.

Officials say the mission of this initiative is to provide accessible, culturally competent mental health services that support the academic success and well-being of SCSD students, while also building a diverse and representative mental health workforce.

“Our students experience a lot,” said Terry Bowers, SCSD director of mental health. “Coming through the doors every day and we know the significant impact on their learning, so having access to these services is going to help them be able to walk through the door and be able to access learning in ways that they have not been able to do so before.”

Upstate also provides mental health services to older students across the state. Since an initial pilot program in 2019, Upstate has directed the SUNY Tele Psychiatry Network that provides mental health services to students at nearly every SUNY campus. Since the program started, it has received almost 3,000 referrals and offered 17,500 patient appointments to students. The program currently employs 8.5 prescribers and two therapists.

In addition to service delivery addressing barriers to accessing care for SUNY students, Director Lucas said the resource serves as a valuable training resource for psychiatric residents and social work interns in college mental health.

Caption: Upstate President Mantosh Dewan, MD, announcing a new partnership with the Syracuse City School District to improve mental health services for students. Participating in the press conference are, from left, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh: SUNY Chancellor John King, JD, EdD; Syracuse School Superintendent Anthony Davis; Deputy Superintendent Pamela Odom, Terry Bowers, director of mental health for the Syracuse City School District; Sipho Mbque, PhD; and Chris Lucas, MD, MPH, Upstate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and director of SUNY Tele-Psychiatry Network.