Students in the Mountain View-Los Altos (MVLA) High School District will soon have access to a new range of mental health and wellness services through a partnership with Pacific Clinics.
The nonprofit behavioral health provider is expected to begin serving students at all three MVLA campuses – Mountain View High School, Los Altos High School and Alta Vista High School – within the next couple of weeks, according to district Wellness Coordinator William Blair.
The district expects about 10 to 15 students to participate during the first year.
Services will include individual and group counseling, family counseling, mental health screenings and assessments, wellness education, peer groups, case management and help coordinating care.
Students won’t necessarily have to receive those services at school. Pacific Clinics can provide care on campus, at its offices, in students’ homes or elsewhere in the community. Services can also be offered after school, during school vacations and over the summer.
The partnership comes at no direct cost to the district. The agreement says Pacific Clinics will use existing state and county funding to provide the services. The state-funded portion comes through California’s Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI), while other services are supported through Pacific Clinics’ contract with Santa Clara County.
Blair said the district’s decision to enter the partnership was not driven by data showing a shortage of mental health services for MVLA students. In an email, he said there are “no unmet student mental health needs,” describing the partnership instead as part of Pacific Clinics’ expansion as a CYBHI statewide affiliate and its acquisition of services at allcove.
The partnership is nevertheless designed to make behavioral-health care easier to access and connect students with support in a variety of settings. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) lists goals including improving access to care, supporting student engagement, fostering a positive school climate and promoting overall student wellness.
Pacific Clinics and the district will also coordinate on student referrals, confidentiality, suicide management, child-abuse reporting and training for school staff.
Student privacy is addressed through both federal health and education privacy laws. The agreement requires compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, and says information about a student’s treatment can be shared with school personnel when the appropriate authorization has been obtained.
The district will refer students to the program, while Pacific Clinics will conduct screenings and provide treatment and related services. The MOU also requires Pacific Clinics staff working with students to meet fingerprinting and other clearance requirements.
The agreement has an initial two-year term and will automatically renew for additional two-year periods unless either side ends it. Either party can terminate the agreement with 30 days’ written notice.
