TA Breaks Down Barriers to Students’ Mental Health Care

New partnership with The Brookline Center provides students with onsite help.

Batya’s daughter needed help. Her bright and imaginative nine-year-old was emotionally withdrawn and struggling academically. Batya began making phone calls to Boston area psychologists, but her optimism quickly faded as call after call revealed the reality of children’s mental health care: long waiting lists and few providers willing to take insurance.

This is why Batya and other TA parents are thrilled with the school’s new partnership with The Brookline Center, a top-tier mental health practice. Starting this year, eligible TA students receive psychological therapy onsite provided by experienced and highly sought-after Brookline Center clinicians.

A thankful parent expressed herself this way, “As parents, we feel comfortable that our child is getting services in a warm and wonderful Torah environment. We are so grateful that TA was able to get our child the support she needed right away.”

Through a combination of state funding, private philanthropy, and insurance payments from families, several students from each campus meet weekly with their sites’ dedicated clinician for a confidential 45-minute session. During the session, the clinician builds rapport while also providing coping tools and strategies to help the child navigate their life. It came as no surprise that all available sessions filled quickly.

“It’s been highly impactful,” says Mrs. Dina Feldman, the Director of Student Support. “We’ve eliminated some of the highest barriers preventing students from accessing mental health care: availability and cost.”

Mrs. Chana Wallach, Student Support Director at the boys’ site, sees numerous additional benefits. Clinicians and patients are able to work on issues as they arise and at the site where they often occur. A student struggling in class can come to therapy and talk “while it’s fresh in their mind.” Furthermore, with parental consent, the therapist can work directly with the student’s teachers who can deploy the same therapeutic tools in the classroom. This way, the teacher is able to reinforce the child’s progress throughout the day. This in turn creates a positive ripple effect throughout the entire class.

TA is proud to stand alongside other area-Jewish day schools adopting this groundbreaking mental health initiative. This is yet another example of TA’s approach to “whole-child” education where each student is recognized as a unique and multifaceted learner with cognitive, physical, behavioral, social and emotional needs which must be addressed in order for a student to succeed. For students who are now able to access regular mental health support, success is now one huge step closer!