WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: Beginning in the fall of 2024, newly awarded Employer Support Grants will provide resources to hire Certified Wellness Coaches and stipends to support Certified Wellness Coach interns.
SACRAMENTO – Today the California Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) awarded over $125 million in Employer Support Grants to 64 education and school-based/school-linked health, behavioral health, and related organizations statewide to help support children and young adults. Beginning in fall 2024, the 18-month grants provide resources to hire Certified Wellness Coaches and supervision support, as well as award stipends to Certified Wellness Coach interns.
“We continue to hear from education partners about the critical need to help our children and youth. By handling broader, non-clinical services, Certified Wellness Coaches will increase access to key well-being and support services that many children, youth and families either don’t know about or don’t take advantage of,” said California Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly.
“Reaching children and youth early is critical and effective,” said HCAI Director Elizabeth Landsberg. “There are many dedicated individuals, behavioral health agencies and community-based organizations working with youth throughout our state, and more resources are needed. Certified Wellness Coaches will bring much needed support to hardworking teams of school professionals and clinical staff at community-based organizations to intervene early to support children and youth’s well-being.”
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT: Nearly half of the state’s adolescents struggle with mental health challenges. To support California’s youth, Certified Wellness Coaches will help build a larger and more diverse behavioral health workforce. Wellness Coaches will provide non-clinical services to support the behavioral health and well-being of young people, including wellness promotion and education, screening, care coordination, individual and group support, and crisis referral. They will work as part of a larger care team and under the direction of qualified school professionals or clinicians.
The new Certified Wellness Coach role was created as part of the state’s Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) to increase California’s overall capacity to support the growing behavioral health needs of the state’s children and youth through age 25. This program is made possible through funding from the CYBHI, which is part of Governor Gavin Newsom’s Master Plan for Kids’ Mental Health, a historic investment by the State of California that aims to improve the mental health and well-being of our children and youth.
The list of grantees includes county offices of education, local education agencies, and school-based/school-linked community-based organizations. Many of these grantees will carry out their work in collaboration with others in their communities. See the entire list of awardees on the HCAI website.
HOW GRANT AWARDEES WILL BENEFIT: Los Angeles Unified School District, the second largest school district in the nation with over 600,000 students in more than 1,000 schools, was awarded $8,094,587.
“We are grateful the Department of Health Care Access and Information has awarded Los Angeles Unified a Certified Wellness Coach Employer Support Grant,” Los Angeles Unified Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho said. “This grant allows us to expand our network of professionals who provide critical academic and social emotional wellbeing support to students and families.”
In rural northeast California, the Lassen County Office of Education, which serves 10 school districts and 4,500 students, was awarded $626,340.
“The Lassen County Office of Education is thrilled to receive the HCAI grant, which will significantly bolster our workforce development initiatives while providing essential services and support to our students. This funding is pivotal in enhancing educational opportunities and preparing our students for successful futures,” said Patricia Gunderson, Superintendent of Lassen County Office of Education.
ABOUT THE CERTIFIED WELLNESS COACH PROFESSION: The Wellness Coach profession is inspired by successful programs and models, such as the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium’s Behavioral Health Aid Program, which provides culturally relevant support for behavioral health and substance use needs.
The Wellness Coach certificate is free. People with work experience or recent graduates in fields like social work or human services can start the process of becoming certified now by visiting cawellnesscoach.org.
Annual scholarships are available to help wellness coach students with educational and related expenses. Those who aspire to become Certified Wellness Coaches needing workforce experience or more education can enroll in HCAI-Designated Education Programs beginning in fall 2024.
LEARN MORE: Both interested Wellness Coach applicants and employers can learn more about the new state-certified Wellness Coach profession at https://cawellnesscoach.org.