BOE approves virtual mental health series

  • Seating diagrams and room layouts are taped to the side of the wall outside the door to a classroom at the new Oglethorpe County Elementary School as BOE members look around. (Avni Trivedi/The Oglethorpe Echo)
    Seating diagrams and room layouts are taped to the side of the wall outside the door to a classroom at the new Oglethorpe County Elementary School as BOE members look around. (Avni Trivedi/The Oglethorpe Echo)
  • Susan Robinson (clockwise, from upper left), Tim Poole, Beverley Levine, Sue Ann Blalock, Guillermo Camacho and Becky Soto share a laugh in the media center of the new Oglethorpe County Elementary School on Tuesday. Levine and the board took a tour prior to the BOE meeting. (Avni Trivedi/The Oglethorpe Echo)
    Susan Robinson (clockwise, from upper left), Tim Poole, Beverley Levine, Sue Ann Blalock, Guillermo Camacho and Becky Soto share a laugh in the media center of the new Oglethorpe County Elementary School on Tuesday. Levine and the board took a tour prior to the BOE meeting. (Avni Trivedi/The Oglethorpe Echo)
  • The word “Patriots” is displayed on the floor of the entrance to the Oglethorpe County Elementary School, which is scheduled to open in January. It will replace the current OCES and the primary school. (Avni Trivedi/The Oglethorpe Echo)
    The word “Patriots” is displayed on the floor of the entrance to the Oglethorpe County Elementary School, which is scheduled to open in January. It will replace the current OCES and the primary school. (Avni Trivedi/The Oglethorpe Echo)

    The Oglethorpe County Board of Education approved an online mental health program during its meeting Tuesday night. 

     

    The virtual educational series will be available to all district families and members of the community, but it will be mandatory for families of students who have been flagged during monthly risk reduction for truancy, attendance or behavioral issues. 

     

    The series comes from the Cook Center for Human Connection, in a joint project with Family Connection, and includes “live caregiver webinars” led and developed by licensed therapists to help caregivers support their child. 

     

    “I had the opportunity to visit some folks from the Cook Center and visit a school that has used the Cook Center, and I’m always interested in looking for things for our parents to tap into,” superintendent Beverley Levine said. 

     

    Topics include “Building Your Child’s Confidence,” “Understanding Eating Disorders,” “Compassionate Parenting & Self-Compassion” and more. 

     

    The cost for the program is $7,200. Family Connection will pay $3,500 and the rest will come from the school safety budget. The community will have access to the program until June 2025. 

     

    “We would have the opportunity to see, ‘OK, do we have any parents actually using this?’ and then see if this is something we want to continue for the next year,” Levine said.

     

    To register for one of the webinars, go to parentguidance.org/mhsindex. 

     

    In other news, the BOE: 

    • Approved Tim Stoudenmire and Daniele Magill retiring effective this month and May 2025, respectively; Misty Tank resigning effective May 2025; Paula Brock, Amanda Beck, Flint Standerfer, Dorothy Boardman-Blocker, Kristen Finn, Stephanie McKinney and Hilda Lowe as substitutes; and Adam Boswell’s promotion from maintenance technician to maintenance supervisor. 
    • Approved RESPOND, a cyberdefense upgrade that “shuts out malware downloads and encrypted downloads.” The cost of the technology is $63,106 and will be covered by a $100,000 grant that is intended to cover cybersecurity. 
    • Approved the 2025 BOE calendar for meetings and work sessions.