I 
114TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4716 
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to support 
teacher and school professional training on awareness of student mental 
health conditions and suicide prevention efforts. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 7, 2016 
Mrs. BEATTY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 to support teacher and school professional train-
ing on awareness of student mental health conditions 
and suicide prevention efforts. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Support Our Students 
Act of 2016’’ or the ‘‘S.O.S. Act of 2016’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
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(1) Approximately 1 in 5 children have a 
diagnosable mental illness. 
(2) Fifty percent of all lifetime cases of lived 
experience of mental illness begin by age 14, and 75 
percent by age 24. 
(3) Fifty percent of students with a mental ill-
ness, age 14 years and older, drop out of high 
school. 
(4) One in 10 children and adolescents suffer 
from mental illness severe enough to cause some 
level of impairment, but only 1 in 5 of such children 
receive specialty mental health services. 
(5) For youth between the ages of 10 and 24, 
suicide is the third leading cause of death, and an 
estimated 90 percent have a diagnosable mental 
health condition. 
(6) Annually, approximately 4,600 youth die as 
a result of suicide and another 156,000 youth ages 
10 to 24 are treated for self-inflicted injuries at 
emergency rooms. 
(7) The overwhelming majority of individuals 
including teens, who attempt suicide, have one or 
more psychiatric or mental health conditions. 
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(8) Suicide prevention and awareness efforts 
are key in combating this often preventable loss of 
life. 
SEC. 3. TRAINING TEACHERS AND SCHOOL PROFES-
SIONALS 
IN 
UNDERSTANDING 
MENTAL 
HEALTH CONDITIONS IN CHILDREN. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Part A of title IV of the Elemen-
tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
7131 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘Subpart 3—Training Teachers and School Profes-
sionals in Understanding Mental Health Condi-
tions in Children 
‘‘SEC. 4131. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 
‘‘(a) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 
grants to eligible State educational agencies to enable such 
agencies to award subgrants to eligible local educational 
agencies to support an existing, or develop a new, program 
that will educate teachers, school personnel, and special-
ized instructional support personnel on mental health con-
ditions in children, including the causes, symptoms, and 
impact on learning. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE
LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL
AGEN-
CY.—The term ‘eligible local educational agency’ 
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means a local educational agency or a local edu-
cational agency in partnership with a mental health 
organization, family advocacy organization, or com-
munity nonprofit organization. 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE
STATE
EDUCATIONAL
AGEN-
CY.—The term ‘eligible State educational agency’ 
means a State educational agency or a State edu-
cational agency in partnership with a mental health 
organization, family advocacy organization, or com-
munity nonprofit organization. 
‘‘(3) SCHOOL PERSONNEL.—The term ‘school 
personnel’ means administrators, administrative 
staff, custodial staff, cafeteria staff, transportation 
staff, and other school-employed staff who interact 
with students. 
‘‘(4) SPECIALIZED
INSTRUCTIONAL
SUPPORT 
PERSONNEL.—The term ‘specialized instructional 
support personnel’ means school counselors, school 
social workers, school psychologists, and other quali-
fied professional personnel involved in providing as-
sessment, diagnosis, counseling, educational, thera-
peutic, and other necessary services (including re-
lated services, as defined in section 602 of the Indi-
viduals with Disabilities Education Act) as part of 
a comprehensive program to meet student needs. 
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‘‘SEC. 4132. GRANTS. 
‘‘(a) APPLICATIONS.—An eligible State educational 
agency that desires to receive a grant under this section 
shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, 
in such manner, and accompanied by such information as 
the Secretary may require. 
‘‘(b) ACTIVITIES.—An eligible State educational 
agency that receives a grant under this section shall use 
the grant funds to award subgrants to eligible local edu-
cational agencies in accordance with subsection (c). 
‘‘SEC. 4133. SUBGRANTS. 
‘‘(a) APPLICATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—An eligible local edu-
cational agency that desires to receive a subgrant 
under this section shall submit an application to the 
eligible State educational agency at such time, in 
such manner, and accompanied by such information 
as the eligible State educational agency may require. 
‘‘(2) DESCRIPTION OF UTILIZATION.—An appli-
cation submitted under subparagraph (A) shall in-
clude a description of how the local educational 
agency will utilize school counselors, school psycholo-
gists, school social workers, or community organiza-
tions with expertise in the lived experience of mental 
illness and suicide prevention efforts, in developing 
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and conducting the training described in paragraph 
(2). 
‘‘(b) TRAINING.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—An eligible local edu-
cational agency that receives a subgrant under this 
section shall support an existing training program 
developed by either the school or a community orga-
nization with expertise in the lived experience of 
mental illness and suicide prevention, or develop a 
new program, in which school counselors, school psy-
chologists, and school social workers develop and 
provide training to teachers, school personnel, and 
specialized instructional support personnel in under-
standing the mental health needs of children. Such 
program shall include an annual in-service training 
program to enable such teachers, school personnel, 
and specialized instructional support personnel— 
‘‘(A) to better understand mental health 
conditions and the early warning signs in chil-
dren and adolescents; 
‘‘(B) to best communicate with families 
about these concerns; 
‘‘(C) to identify classroom strategies for 
working effectively with children with mental 
health conditions; and 
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‘‘(D) to understand school specific infor-
mation, including, as appropriate, how schools 
are— 
‘‘(i) assisting in linking students to 
supports and services; and 
‘‘(ii) providing information on the 
school’s mental health services and sup-
ports, including school social work and 
psychological services, as well as the 
school’s referral process for additional 
school-linked services connecting to com-
munity mental health professionals. 
‘‘(2) FAMILY
PERSPECTIVE.—A training pro-
gram described in subparagraph (A) shall incor-
porate family and parent perspectives. 
‘‘(3) TRAINING PROGRAM FOR ALL AREAS OF 
THE STATE AND FOR PERSONNEL SERVING INDIAN 
CHILDREN.— 
‘‘(A) URBAN
AND
RURAL
AREAS.—In 
awarding subgrants under this section, a State 
educational agency shall ensure training pro-
grams described under subparagraph (A) are 
available for teachers, school personnel, and 
specialized instructional support personnel in 
urban and rural areas across the State. 
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‘‘(B) INDIAN
CHILDREN.—A State edu-
cational agency that receives a grant under this 
section shall award subgrants to eligible local 
educational 
agencies 
described 
in 
section 
6112(b)(1) and Indian tribes described in sec-
tion 6112(c). 
‘‘(4) SCHOOL-BASED
MENTAL
HEALTH
SERV-
ICES PROVIDERS.—A training program described in 
subparagraph (A) shall include a school-based men-
tal health service provider and a community organi-
zation with expertise in the lived experience of men-
tal illness or suicide prevention, whenever possible, 
to maximize training outcomes and facilitate coordi-
nated referrals when more intensive community serv-
ices are needed. 
‘‘(c) GUIDELINES.—In carrying out a training pro-
gram described in paragraph (2), an eligible local edu-
cational agency may— 
‘‘(1) report to the Secretary on the agency’s 
commitment to students with mental illness and sui-
cide prevention efforts through innovative programs, 
resource development, and the development of a 
mental health curriculum and activities that focus on 
raising awareness within schools of early onset men-
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tal health conditions and linking students with effec-
tive mental health services and supports; 
‘‘(2) describe existing school-community part-
nerships that provide effective clinical services to 
students with severe mental health needs; 
‘‘(3) describe how the agency will measure out-
comes, as described in subsection (d), specifically for 
students with serious mental health needs; 
‘‘(4) describe how the training program will be 
effective for teachers, school personnel, and special-
ized instructional support personnel in culturally and 
linguistically diverse school communities; and 
‘‘(5) describe any strong links to the community 
mental health system and community mental health 
providers through interagency collaboration, includ-
ing documenting— 
‘‘(A) the extent of the interagency collabo-
ration (including the engagement in joint activi-
ties); and 
‘‘(B) the dates during which the collabora-
tion has been in effect and any outcomes that 
have been achieved as a result of this activity. 
‘‘SEC. 4134. EVALUATIONS AND MEASURES OF OUTCOMES. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop 
measures of outcomes for eligible local educational agen-
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cies that receive subgrants under this section, in order to 
evaluate the effectiveness of programs carried out under 
the subgrant. 
‘‘(b) OUTCOMES.—The measures of outcomes de-
scribed in paragraph (1) shall include, at a minimum, pro-
visions to evaluate— 
‘‘(1) the effectiveness of comprehensive school 
mental health training and suicide prevention pro-
grams established under this section; 
‘‘(2) the effectiveness of formal partnership 
linkages among child and family serving institutions, 
community support systems, and the educational 
system, if applicable; 
‘‘(3) the effectiveness of the training program 
in culturally and linguistically diverse school commu-
nities; 
‘‘(4) the improvement in understanding mental 
health conditions with the purpose of providing a 
safe and supportive learning environment among 
school staff, students, and parents; 
‘‘(5) the improvement in— 
‘‘(A) case-finding of students in need of 
more intensive services; 
‘‘(B) effective communication with fami-
lies; and 
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‘‘(C) referral of identified students with 
mental health related concerns for an evalua-
tion for services and supports; 
‘‘(6) the reduction in the number of students 
with mental health conditions and those identified as 
children with disabilities under the emotional dis-
turbance and other health impairment categories of 
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act who 
are suspended and an increase in the number of 
such students who graduate from high school; and 
‘‘(7) the increased successful matriculation to 
postsecondary school. 
‘‘SEC. 4135. DATA COLLECTION COMPONENT. 
‘‘(a) ANNUAL DATA SUBMISSIONS AND REPORTS.— 
‘‘(1) DATA SUBMISSION.— 
‘‘(A) LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL
AGENCIES.— 
An eligible local educational agency that re-
ceives a subgrant under this section shall annu-
ally submit to the eligible State educational 
agency a report that includes data to evaluate 
the success of the program carried out by the 
eligible local educational agency. Such reports 
shall utilize the measures of outcomes described 
in subsection (d). 
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‘‘(B) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.—An 
eligible State educational agency that receives a 
grant under this section shall annually submit 
to the Secretary a report that includes data 
from the reports submitted to the agency from 
eligible local educational agencies pursuant to 
clause (i). 
‘‘(2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 6 
months after the date the Secretary receives reports 
under subparagraph (A)(ii), the Secretary shall com-
pile the data in the reports and conduct a general 
analysis of the success of the programs carried out 
by the local educational agencies involved with 
subgrant funds received under this section. The Sec-
retary shall prepare a report containing the compila-
tion and general analysis, and submit the report to 
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Edu-
cation and the Workforce of the House of Rep-
resentatives. 
‘‘(b) EVALUATION AND REPORT.— 
‘‘(1) EVALUATION.—Not later than 12 months 
after the end of the initial subgrant period for eligi-
ble local educational agencies under this section, the 
Secretary shall conduct an in-depth evaluation of the 
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success of the programs carried out by the local edu-
cational agencies with subgrant funds received under 
this section. 
‘‘(2) REPORT
TO
CONGRESS.—The Secretary 
shall prepare a report containing the in-depth eval-
uation, and submit the report to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Sen-
ate and the Committee on Education and the Work-
force of the House of Representatives. 
‘‘SEC. 4136. TERMS AND COST OF THE GRANT. 
‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 
this section such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 
2017 and each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents in 
section 2 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 is amended by inserting after the item relating 
to subpart 2 of part A of title IV the following: 
‘‘SUBPART 3—TRAINING TEACHERS AND SCHOOL PROFESSIONALS IN 
UNDERSTANDING MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS IN CHILDREN 
‘‘Sec. 4131. Program authorized. 
‘‘Sec. 4132. Grants. 
‘‘Sec. 4133. Subgrants. 
‘‘Sec. 4134. Evaluations and measures of outcome. 
‘‘Sec. 4135. Data collection component. 
‘‘Sec. 4136. Terms and cost of the grant.’’. 
Æ 
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