BU Wheelock’s special education faculty will collaborate with faculty from the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) on a new grant from the U.S. Department of Education to establish a cohort of doctoral students focused on advancing equity in the study of students’ mental health. The project, led by Jennifer Greif Green at Boston University and Shane Jimerson at the University of California Santa Barbara, will prepare special education and school psychology students to meet the complex mental health needs of diverse students.

Project TEAMS will fully fund doctoral students at BU Wheelock and UCSB for the duration of their studies and support their travel between the two universities to collaborate with faculty, students, and area schools. It was developed by a group of BU Wheelock researchers that included Elizabeth Bettini, Nathan Jones, and Zachary Rossetti, along with Hardin Coleman, Scott Solberg, Kimberly Howard, Stephanie Curenton, BU Wheelock Dean David Chard, and UCSB faculty.

“Even before the pandemic, studies indicated that 20–40% of children and adolescents experienced a psychiatric disorder by the time they reached the age of 18,” says Green, a BU Wheelock associate professor and UCSB alum. “Current studies show rates this year are even higher than before. This grant will help prepare doctoral students in special education and school psychology to conduct research on preventing the development of mental health problems and supporting students with mental health needs.”

Project TEAMS will give doctoral students a deep knowledge of assessment and intervention related to youth social, emotional, and mental health needs for all students, with a focus on serving culturally, linguistically, and racially diverse students. Doctoral students will be prepared to produce new research related to students with emotional/behavioral disorders, and a will acquire a comprehensive understanding on how to prepare diverse special education teachers, and school psychologists to collaborate on interdisciplinary teams.

“These collaborative efforts across BU and UCSB will prepare the next generation of faculty who will advance equity in mental health services” says Jimerson. “These future faculty will contribute leadership, scholarship, and to the preparation of the next generation of professionals who support and promote the healthy development of diverse children.”

“Between BU Wheelock and UCSB, we have an unmatched group of special education and school psychology faculty and researchers who are all eager to begin this groundbreaking partnership,” says Dean Chard. “This project truly leverages the strengths of each university and surrounding areas to provide the best learning opportunities.”