MONCKS CORNER, S.C. (WCSC) - The Berkeley County School District plans to grow mental health support for students for the upcoming school year.
School district officials presented an update on student mental health support as part of the Division of Student Support Services on Monday night.
The department oversees student success in the district with topics including counseling services, diversity, equity and inclusion and the Office of Student and Family Support.
District leaders created a multi-year plan called a Continuous Improvement Cycle to run from 2021 to 2026. Division leaders presented the work towards mental health services across the school district to district board members.
The multi-year plan includes efforts toward creating a new alternative school program called the Next Step Learning Center Trail Blazers. Chief Officer of the Division of Student Support Services Kylon Middleton says the idea is to create a rebrand of the Berkeley Alternative School with a tier-level program for students.
“Through tiered placements, students, who will be able to, based on points, work their way out back to their home school, how they are associated with their home school,” Middleton says.”
The tier system is based on student behavioral offenses. Each one varies in how long students are placed in the program. Students in tier one face a nine-week placement, tier two students face 14 weeks and tier three means 18 weeks.
Students work their way out of the program by gaining points through the school and completing community service. Plans detail that students will need 100 points for tier one, 200 points for tier two and 300 points for tier three.
Students will earn four points a day based on categories such as attendance, behavior, grades and advisory.
Berkeley High School Assistant Principal Jonah Bryant says the alternative program is meant to be transitional, as it is a step for students to be successful. Bryant says the point system is an opportunity to incentivize students for good behavior.
“Them being able to work their way out of the program allows us to hopefully provide them support for them to go on and be successful after they leave us, but also the possibility to support more students in the district,” Bryant says.
The program will become an addition to the current alternative school at the start of the upcoming school year. Leaders say the learning center will have its own facility in January as part of the district’s over $485 million budget.
Division leaders explained ongoing mental health services after Gov. Henry McMaster’s executive order to expand access to mental health services across the state. The district piloted a placement of clinicians in seven schools in January 2025.
The district now has 42 placed private mental health providers in 42 out of 47 schools, as well as 26 additional clinicians. Leaders say all 47 schools have mental health services, as trained social workers are also available to offer students therapeutic services.
“Some students are bullied, some students are dealing with anxiety,” Middleton says. “They need coping mechanisms and or tools that will help them to fully integrate in a school setting.”
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