Student Well-Being & Special Education Blog

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eLuma’s 2025 State of Student Mental Health Report Calls for Sustainable, System-Wide Solutions in K–12 Schools

The Student Mental Health Crisis Isn’t Going Away. It’s Time to Act. For years, schools have worked tirelessly to respond to what many believed was a temporary mental health crisis tied to the isolation and upheaval of the pandemic. Educators and families hoped that as classrooms reopened and routines returned, students would regain their footing. But the latest data tells a different story. According to eLuma’s 2025 State of Student Mental Health Report, the crisis hasn’t eased in the five years since COVID-19 shut down schools nationwide. Nearly six in ten school-based providers say student mental health has worsened over the past year, while only four percent report improvement. Anxiety, depression, and behavioral challenges continue to rise, shaping students’ ability to learn, connect, and thrive. These findings make one thing clear: what we are facing is not a temporary setback. Schools are facing a long-term shift that demands immediate, coordinated, and sustained action. Among those who have witnessed this shift firsthand is Kay Kelly, Mental Health Clinical Services Specialist for eLuma and an experienced licensed school psychologist. Kay has worked in school-based mental health for over a decade, providing direct services, consultation, and leadership to support students’ mental health needs.

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What Is Mental Health Literacy in Schools? A Guide for K-12 District Leaders

District leaders are carrying an exhausting mix of priorities, including special education compliance, provider shortages, rising behavioral referrals, chronic absenteeism, and student mental health needs that show up differently in every building. Each initiative is urgent on its own. Together, they create a system under constant strain. National data reflects the scale of what schools are navigating. In the CDC’s 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 39.7 percent of students reported persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, 28.5 percent experienced poor mental health, and 20.4 percent seriously considered attempting suicide. When pressure builds, it is understandable that the default solution becomes “hire more providers.” Additional clinical capacity is often necessary, but many districts discover that it’s not so simple. Schools face nationwide staffing shortages, and staffing alone does not fix late referrals, inconsistent documentation, or crisis-driven overload. A more sustainable approach connects two elements that are often treated separately: Mental health literacy at Tier 1, which builds shared understanding and early recognition Expanded access to care at Tier 2 and Tier 3, which ensures timely intervention when needs rise Districts do not need to choose between prevention and intervention. They need to design them to work together. Mental Health Literacy is

5 Tier 2 MTSS Interventions to Prevent Escalating Student Behavior Challenges

For school and district leaders, MTSS often feels like a balancing act. Tier 1 supports every student, but it cannot address every need. Tier 3 exists for intensive intervention, yet capacity is limited. Meanwhile, behavior challenges, academic struggles, and staff workload create constant pressure. In this delicate space, Tier 2 is not just a middle layer. It is the stabilizing force that keeps students supported, staff effective, and systems sustainable. When Tier 2 is clearly structured and implemented with fidelity, it prevents small challenges from escalating into major disruptions. Without that structure, strain builds quickly, and service gaps begin to appear exactly when students need support the most. In our recent webinar with CEC, Five High-Impact MTSS Supports That You Can Use Tomorrow: Practical Strategies to Improve Behavior, Engagement, and Staff Wellbeing, we explored Tier 2 MTSS interventions backed by research that schools can implement immediately to strengthen engagement, improve behavior, and reinforce system stability. As Dr. Alexander Kers, former special education teacher and behavior analyst, shared: “MTSS really operates under this one fundamental premise. All students are general education students first.” This perspective reframes Tier 2. It is not just a placeholder between universal and intensive supports; it is

Breaking Down Silos: How School Leaders Can Align General Education and Special Education with Co-Teaching Strategies

In many schools, general education and special education still operate in separate worlds, with different teams, meetings, and goals. When these systems stay disconnected, students miss out, and educators feel overwhelmed and unsupported. A recent edWeb webinar, presented by Brandy Samuell, Director of Product for K–12 Services at eLuma, along with education leaders Mike Leddy and Autumn Francisco, offered a thoughtful and practical look at how school leaders can bring these two sides together. When Systems Don’t Work Together, Students Lose Out A rise in behavior issues and special education referrals is often a sign of something deeper: a lack of collaboration. Without a shared approach, students can get conflicting messages, duplicated support, or none at all. That kind of misalignment can delay the help students need and lead to frustration for everyone involved. Leadership Makes the Difference Leadership drives change. School leaders play a critical role in shaping the school culture and expectations around collaboration. That means building a shared vision, making space for co-planning, and showing that general and special education staff are working toward the same goals. The ASCCR Framework: A Roadmap for Real Integration To help schools move forward, the ASCCR Framework offers a structured approach: