FDL School District Awarded $75,000 Grant

The Fond du Lac School District has been awarded a $75,000 grant from the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) as part of their School-Based Mental Health Services Grant Program for the 2021-23 cohort.

This funding will be used to expand the onsite mental health services provided through Fondy C.A.R.E.S. to three additional schools: Chegwin,
Parkside and Riverside.

The District’s goal is to expand to the three remaining elementary schools (Lakeshore, Rosenow and Waters) by the fall of 2022 so that all District schools will be able to offer Fondy C.A.R.E.S. therapy services to students.

Fondy C.A.R.E.S is a partnership between the Fond du Lac School District and community-based agencies to offer mental health services beyond what is available in a typical school setting. C.A.R.E.S. stands for Community Access, Responding and Empowering Students. The services
provided are by licensed therapists during the school day, which helps to remove barriers for students to access mental health care.

The community-based providers accept a variety of insurance plans and
some offer sliding fee scales.

Last year, Fondy C.A.R.E.S provided 1,949 therapy sessions to Fond du
Lac School District students. “By working hand-in-hand, our school staff and the community-based therapy providers can support
students holistically in the school setting,” said Katie Moder, Director of Pupil Services. “Helping students by providing access to licensed mental health services is one way that we can provide care to those who need this support. We are seeing an increasing need for mental health support and we can provide access to even more students by expanding Fondy C.A.R.E.S.”

Fond du Lac was one of 161 applications for the grant program which will award a total of $10 million to 153 applicants representing all parts of Wisconsin.