Elementary Guidance Grant

Fort Worth ISD was awarded a three year elementary guidance grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The goal of this grant is to improve educational outcomes for Fort Worth ISD students by expanding counseling programs in identified elementary schools with a focus on preventative mental health approaches efforts that can be replicated across the District and nation that ensure a safe space for learning and growth.

The objectives of this grant are to:

• lower discipline referrals within elementary schools by developing integrated mental health curriculum and providing training to assist teachers in improving classroom management.
• improve ratios of mental health professional in target elementary schools by increasing counselor staffing and involvement of community agencies and the coordinated health network within Fort Worth ISD.
• improve academic achievement by providing training and direct assistance to students and their families to overcome personal problems or disabilities that affect students’ academic achievement and relationships with peers and family members 

The grant involves twelve schools, three grant counselors and a project coordinator. The schools included in the grant are:

• A.M. Pate
• Atwood McDonald
• Eastern Hills
• Edward Briscoe
• M.M. Walton
• Maude Logan
• Mitchell Blvd.
• Meadowbrook
• Rufino Mendoza
• Versia Williams
• W.J. Turner
• West Handley

All of these schools are assigned a counselor that spends one day a week working with students and their parents.

In addition to working with students, the elementary grant counselors are members of a guidance curriculum team. This team of counselors, teachers and instructional staff began writing an elementary guidance curriculum tied to core subjects in June 2009. These lessons will be field tested during the 2009-2010 school year.

Guidance Intranet Documents