The Gloucester School Board met Tuesday night in the T.C. Walker Education Center Auditorium for several agenda items, including a presentation on mental health at Gloucester County Public Schools.
Director of School Counseling at Gloucester High School Matthew Lord, GCPS Psychologist Christina Mahoney and Abingdon Counselor Lindsey Mahnke gave a presentation on Supporting Student Mental Health.
Mahnke discussed mental health services offered at the county’s elementary schools, including student recognition programs, classroom management systems and weekly social-emotional learning lessons. Four out of the five elementary schools use the program Second Step for SEL which includes units on Growth Mindset and Goal-Setting, Emotion Management, Empathy and Kindness and Problem-Solving.
School board member Darren Post voiced his concerns about the Second Step program, pertaining to anti-racism and anti-bias content, specifically the possibility of Critical Race Theory and gender-supporting ...