AMAZING DEVELOPMENT! Certified Wellness Coach (CWC) is a new profession that is helping increase our state’s overall capacity to support behavioral health and the well-being of California’s children and youth in a wide variety of settings, such as schools, community-based organizations, and healthcare providers. The CWC role is designed to enhance the mental health and well-being of all youth by offering preventive and early intervention services through a diverse behavioral health workforce. CWC’s promote wellness, conduct screenings, provide educational sessions, link youth to external resources, offer safe spaces, and make referrals for crisis support as needed, effectively bridging the crucial gap between need and accessibility.
Wellness Coaches can:
Within our Unconditional Education Programs, we have recently hired four CWC’s. These wellness coaches are located across East Oakland at Cox Academy, Lazear Charter Academy, Latitude High 37.5, and Lighthouse TK-5. Our CWC’s recently participated in their first official Professional Learning Community, which was facilitated by Emily Marsh, our Clinical Director, focusing on outlining their key responsibilities at their respective sites and small group facilitation. The next Professional Learning Community will be facilitated by our Director of Behavioral Intervention, Darrell Burns. The CWC’s Professional Learning Community consists of a blended behavioral and clinical model to offer a balanced approach to their professional development. The integrated model enhances our holistic approach treatment, allowing CWCs to consider the whole person rather than just isolated needs. In the months to come, PLC will focus on both individual and group skill development as well as behavioral coaching techniques.
By prioritizing the well-being of all students, we can create a thriving school environment where all youth have the chance to succeed. Although this is the beginning of this new and impactful role, I am super excited to see where this journey takes us.
Wellness Coaches can:
- Provide one to one behavior intervention support (individual clients) with individualized goal setting
- Facilitate small skill groups focused on social skills, coping, wellness, stress management, healthy lifestyle choices, mental health support, building resilience, and much more
- Implement capacity building strategies for general education teachers pertaining to tier 2 interventions and wellness
- Develop and implement strategies to address chronic absenteeism
- Facilitate caregiver workshops
- Build community connections
- Connect caregivers to external resources
Within our Unconditional Education Programs, we have recently hired four CWC’s. These wellness coaches are located across East Oakland at Cox Academy, Lazear Charter Academy, Latitude High 37.5, and Lighthouse TK-5. Our CWC’s recently participated in their first official Professional Learning Community, which was facilitated by Emily Marsh, our Clinical Director, focusing on outlining their key responsibilities at their respective sites and small group facilitation. The next Professional Learning Community will be facilitated by our Director of Behavioral Intervention, Darrell Burns. The CWC’s Professional Learning Community consists of a blended behavioral and clinical model to offer a balanced approach to their professional development. The integrated model enhances our holistic approach treatment, allowing CWCs to consider the whole person rather than just isolated needs. In the months to come, PLC will focus on both individual and group skill development as well as behavioral coaching techniques.
By prioritizing the well-being of all students, we can create a thriving school environment where all youth have the chance to succeed. Although this is the beginning of this new and impactful role, I am super excited to see where this journey takes us.
Blog By: Devina Brooks, Director of School Partnerships
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