Date of Award
9-22-2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Educational Leadership, Ed.D.
First Advisor
Bronwyn MacFarlane
Committee Members
Karen Buchanan; Tania Carlson Reis
Abstract
Exploring Mental Health Services Within Elementary Schools in the First Through Third Grade: Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Case Study An overwhelming amount of research shows that youth in America are experiencing a mental health crisis (Nelson, 2020), impacting students’ ability to self-regulate and self-isolation tendencies and emotional behaviors have increased resulting in the need to address school-based mental health services, the instructional support provided to early childhood teachers, and students' well-being. The problem investigated in this study was the impact of school-based mental health services provided in response to the experience of the pandemic and the holistic relationship between instructional support and students' well-being. The purpose of this case study was to analyze and describe teacher perceptions of post-pandemic pedagogical practices within a school-based mental health program, specifically teaching during the pandemic The School Mental Health Framework and Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), the conceptual model of systemic SEL in educational settings, was used to examine experiences and perceptions of 14 participants: two district leaders, two mental health provider professionals, and ten early childhood teachers. This case study explored the effectiveness of mental health services within elementary schools in the first, second, and third grades post-pandemic, in 2022-2024. Three research questions guided the study and findings. Five themes: pedagogical enhancement skills, student well-being, intentional collaboration, professional communication, and teacher support were identified. Findings showed (1) student support, student support was essential due to increased behaviors resulting from the pandemic experience; (2) teachers felt inadequate preparation and preparedness; (3) standard curriculum and SEL programs would increase the effectiveness of the school-based program; (4) sustained and ongoing professional development and training are needed; (5) intentional collaboration is essential to systematic support; and (6) a disconnect exists in teacher support between policy, procedures, and practice.
Rights Management
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Thomas, Yolanda Y., "Exploring Mental Health Services Within Elementary Schools in the First Through Third Grades: Post-Covid-19 Pandemic Case Study" (2025). Student Theses and Dissertations. 1096.
https://arch.astate.edu/all-etd/1096
