Welcome to our podcast: Conversations About Student Mental Health. I’m Chris Leonard, Clinical Social Worker working with adolescents for over 25 years. In this podcast, I talk with school administrators, educators, clinicians, and parents to open a dialogue that will help the growing number of students struggling with mental illness. Chris Leonard: Welcome back to […]
PODCAST: Dealing With Grief
Welcome to our podcast: Conversations About Student Mental Health. I’m Chris Leonard, Clinical Social Worker working with adolescents for over 25 years. In this podcast, I talk with school administrators, educators, clinicians, and parents to open a dialogue that will help the growing number of students struggling with mental illness. Chris: In our most recent episode, […]
PODCAST: Coping with Fear & Anxiety
Welcome to our podcast: Conversations About Student Mental Health. I’m Chris Leonard, Clinical Social Worker working with adolescents for over 25 years. In this podcast, I talk with school administrators, educators, clinicians, and parents to open a dialogue that will help the growing number of students struggling with mental illness.

The Benefits of Trauma-Informed Schools
Some students face the effects of traumatic experiences which cause mental health issues that have a significant effect on their ability to succeed in school. Creating a trauma-informed school environment will provide a teacher, counselor, or school-based clinician with the awareness to recognize students at risk and give them tools to provide support for students […]

School Refusal: 8 Effective Intervention Strategies
School refusal impacts between 2 and 5% of students.1 This anxiety-based mental health issue ranges from mild separation anxiety to more severe cases of anxiety or depression that can cause young adolescents to miss weeks or months of school each year. School-based counseling can provide effective interventions that help students improve attendance and enjoy learning […]

From Helicopter Parenting to Lawnmower Parenting
By Executive Director, John Reilly, MSW, LCSW, PsyA. The newest parenting style label is the lawnmower parent. These parents are described as doing anything to prevent their child’s failure and mowing down any obstacles to their child’s success. People describing the lawnmower parent might do so in a condescending tone – As if they would never […]