ATHOL – The Healey-Driscoll administration has announced nearly $5 million in funding to expand early childhood mental health consultation services across Massachusetts, including in Athol and other North Quabbin communities.
The FY27 grants, announced in July, were awarded to five regional organizations selected through the Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) to provide Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation services. The Collaborative for Educational Services in Northampton received $1,157,712 to provide services to communities including Athol, Orange, Petersham, Phillipston, Royalston and Winchendon.
Aimee Smith-Zeoli, behavioral health supervisor for EEC, said consultants work directly with licensed early education programs, educators and families. Their work can include classroom observations, coaching and training, and developing strategies based on the needs of individual programs.
“One of the increasing needs we’ve heard from our educators, as well as our program directors, is just the increase in behavioral health needs among children in the classroom,” EEC Commissioner Amy Kershaw said.
Kershaw said behavioral health concerns can affect the individual child, other children in the classroom and educators. Smith-Zeoli said those concerns include challenges with self-regulation and other areas of social-emotional development, a trend she said began before the COVID-19 pandemic. She said programs are also seeing more children with special education needs.
“The early childhood window is small, but we know that we can have big impacts when we’re able to get in there, especially when we’re looking at social-emotional needs for young children,” Smith-Zeoli said.
She said consultants also work with educators and program leaders, providing strategies to help them respond to children’s needs.
“When they feel like they are empowered to provide kids with what they need in the classroom, then everybody does well,” Smith-Zeoli said.
Kershaw said programs using the consultation services have reported fewer children leaving classrooms, allowing more children to remain with their peers and access the curriculum. She said programs have also reported reduced staff turnover and stress among educators.
Kershaw emphasized the importance of the funding in western Massachusetts, particularly for rural communities like Athol and the North Quabbin area that have more limited access to behavioral health support.
Petersham Montessori is one local school that has already used Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation services. Head of School Cheryl Calcari said Petersham Montessori has made referrals when children needed additional support, with families required to give permission before consultants become involved.
Once a referral is approved, Calcari said consultants can observe children at the school and work with families at home. The school also met monthly with consultants to review how things were going and discuss whether approaches used in the classroom could be tried at home.
“What happens in the school and what happens in the home are always two different things,” Calcari said.
In one case, Calcari said consultants worked with her and the family as a child prepared to transition to public school, including sitting in on meetings to help make the process smoother.
Calcari also spoke about the challenges parents can face while balancing work and caring for young children.
“I think the biggest thing is parents need to know that they’re not the only ones in that situation,” she said. “They’re not the only family that has a child with behavioral needs.”
Calcari said getting children the support they need early is important and encouraged those who need the consultation services to use them.
“I just think that it’s a really great program,” she said.